Racing: Phillips' lead lady delivers

La Landiere completes chase six-timer at expense of jockey who jilted her for McBride

Three fences out in the Racing Post Chase here yesterday Richard Johnson realised he was about to become the living embodiment of the old adage about jockeys being the worst judges. In the lead on last year's winner, Gunther McBride, but beginning to run out of petrol, he saw that the horse cruising up alongside was La Landiere, whom he had rejected in favour of his own mount.

"I think I'm beat," he called across to Warren Marston, with the time-honoured camaraderie of the weighing room, "You kick on and you'll win." So Marston did.

La Landiere, whose fine three-length victory was her sixth in succession in her first season over fences, has been a splendid flagbearer for her trainer, Richard Phillips, in the difficult time since he lost the tenancy of Jackdaws Castle last year. He is now happily based in a 48-strong yard at Adelestrop, near Moreton-in-Marsh, Gloucestershire, and this £100,000 Grade Three prize was the best of his career.

"This mare is an angel at home," he said. "She has a wonderful temperament and does everything I ask. If she was a woman, I'd marry her."

La Landiere's progress this term has been remarkable, and if she were not such a lady she would doubtless salute the handicapper in two-hooved fashion. Johnson had been in her saddle for her past three runs and, although his decision to sever such a winning partnership was a reluctant one, it was partly politic, as Gunther McBride is trained by his main employer, Philip Hobbs. Certainly punters judged the two horses as equals, as they started 5-1 joint-favourites.

Marston, one of the journeymen of his trade, does not get the chances accorded to his more celebrated colleague, who was described good-naturedly by Phillips as "the worst judge since Pickles", and was delighted to take this one. La Landiere's form stood the closest inspection before-hand, but the one doubt had been her stamina, previously untested over three miles. But any fears on that count proved groundless.

"She travelled the whole way and galloped right to the line," said Marston, who added: "Don't worry about Richard – he jocks me off plenty of times."

La Landiere, a French-bred eight-year-old who runs for two of Phillips's most faithful supporters, Roger and Carol Skan, is Cheltenham-bound, but not in the staying novices' crown, the Royal & SunAlliance Chase.

"She's in everything else, like the Cathcart and Mildmay of Flete, so we'll see," said Phillips. "It is days like this, and looking forward to something like Cheltenham, that make all the hassle worthwhile. And it is because of the support of people like the Skans through what has been a rollercoaster time that we can do it."

Gunther McBride, who was, like third-placed Ryalux, in the van the whole way, ran a solid prep for the Grand National. Of those behind the principals, Carryonharry proved best of the Martin Pipe trio in fourth, a place ahead of his stablemate Montreal, with Historg sixth.

The early pace in the Triumph Hurdle trial, the Adonis Hurdle, would have flattered a kerb crawler, but there was no doubting the dash that took Well Chief clear of his rivals at the business end. As Tony McCoy released the brakes going to the third-last flight, the chestnut German-bred did a fair impersonation of a champagne cork as he popped away from the flat-footed pack. And from being a 33-1 outsider for the four-year-old title, he is now as low as 5-1 in the lists.

Pipe has a plethora of Triumph entries – another of his charges, Don Fernando, is favourite – and professes not to have a hard-and-fast idea of the pecking order among them. "This one seems to have improved a bit, though," he conceded. "I'm not sure of the value of the form because of the farce of a pace at the start, but he jumped well and kept going well."

Well Chief, yet another smart-looking recruit for his owner, David Johnson, had defied expectations in even getting to the racecourse this term, let alone winning on his debut and now taking this Grade Two prize.

"He had a hard time after he was gelded," said Pipe, "and we didn't think he'd see a racecourse until next season. But he started to come to himself and we let him take his chance at Taunton nine days ago. He hadn't jumped hurdles much under saddle, but he's done plenty of loose schooling."

Saintsaire, the erstwhile Triumph favourite, did not have a happy passage, but his fifth place was a dull effort even allowing for that, and he has been removed from most Cheltenham lists.

Richard Johnson did not go home emptyhanded, winning the opening Pendil Novices Chase on Hand Inn Hand. The Henry Daly-trained seven-year-old took the Grade Two contest in some style from the front.