Terresita

Terresita stayed on well to finish third behind Scarface and Invincible Nao in the two-and-a-half-mile novices’ handicap chase at Sandown on Saturday. She started off in the front rank, but she had dropped to sixth of the seven runners by the time they rose to the first fence, and she was about 12 lengths behind the leader by the time they got to the end of the back straight first time. Her jumping lacked fluency throughout too, she dropped to last and she was actually a detached last as they raced to the end of the back straight final time. Still last jumping the Pond Fence, the third last, she stayed on well from there. It never really looked like she would get to the leader, but she closed all the way to the line, finishing a clear third and getting to within four lengths of the winner.

Winner of a mares’ handicap chase at Ludlow on her previous run off a mark of 111, she raced off an 8lb higher mark here, but she proved that she was up to this mark. This was a race in which the prominent racers dominated, so she did well to get as close as she did from the rear. Rated 122 at her peak over hurdles, she stayed three miles over hurdles, and she would be interesting now stepped back up to three miles over fences. This was just her fourth chase too, and she could take a nice step forward when she can introduce a little more fluency to her jumping.

Sandown, 9^th March 2024