Betway Chester Cup
Heritage Handicap 15:10 £120,000 added, 4yo plus, 2m 2f 147y, Class 2
Wednesday 6th May 2015

1 Trip To Paris 10/1
2 Quick Jack 4/1
3 Zafayan 6/1
4 Gabrial's King 15/2
17 ran Distances: ¾l, ½l, 1¾l
TIME 4m 12.87s (slow by 11.87s)

Trip To Paris strikes late on the outside to nail the Chester Cup for Ed Dunlop and Graham Lee

Trip To Paris
© Racehorse Photos

Trained by Ed Dunlop and ridden by Graham Lee, the four-year-old (10-1) arrived with a last-gasp charge from the outside of the field to deny a strong Irish challenge.

Quick Jack finished second as the 4-1 favourite, while Zafayan was third.

Lee said: "He was hanging badly left, and I ended up dropping the reins along the straight.

"He's always travelled well and he showed at Ripon he's got a turn of foot."

The landscape of the race did not alter too much until the final five furlongs when the front-running Buthelezi faded out of the picture.

John Reel was always to the fore and gained a slight advantage, but the Irish duo were hot on his heels and ended up jousting for top honours two furlongs out.

Just when it looked like the versatile Quick Jack had the edge over Zafayan, Trip To Paris suddenly darted into contention and ended up scoring by three-quarters of a length on his first try at beyond two miles.

Gabrial's King completed the minor positions in fourth place.

Dunlop, whose inmate was bringing up a hat-trick following victories at Lingfield and Ripon, said: "The horse was amazing.

"It's the first time he's run at that trip - he's been a revelation. I made the strange entry and he's won.

"He's a mile-and-a-half to a two-mile horse. He quickens, and I think that's made the difference.

"I've always wanted to win this race. It's very hard to do it, so it's a great day."

Betway Chester Cup Heritage Handicap
£120,000 added, 4yo plus, 2m 2f 147y, Class 2
17 ran
Going: Good to Soft