Off Chance

Off Chance put in a really good performance to take a one-mile listed race at Pontefract on Tuesday. She travelled well out the back after she was a bit slowly away, off what was a fairly testing pace set by Just Lille. She made decent progress as they came into the straight, but she was a bit short of room, and jockey Duran Fentiman had to switch her two furlongs out, but she finished really well from there to get her head in front inside the last 75 yards. She probably had a lot more in hand than the winning margin of three parts of a length would suggest and there was a lot to like about the way she stayed on up Pontefract’s steep hill.

It is probable that Off Chance would have been well prepared for this, given that she is trainer by Tim Easterby, who trained Pipalong, after whom the race was named, and she was really well backed. Also, she is a tricky filly, apparently she has to be ponied at home, but this was the first time that she was ponied at the races, and it brought about obvious improvement. She is still fairly lightly raced for a four-year-old and there could be more to come. This was not a particularly strong listed race, and the favourite Flora Trevelyan, rated 98, who set a fairly decent standard, probably under-performed. That said, Off Chance had finished ahead of that runner before in a competitive handicap won by Alsace Lorraine at Ascot earlier in the season and she was only 1lb worse off for that run here. The daughter of Olden Times loves fast ground and she may not be finished winning yet.

6th July 2010