KELSO saw a Langholm-trained winner in Empire De Maulde on Saturday.
Taking the win in a six-horse race, the 13/8 favourite, ridden by Brian Hughes, was the first James Ewart-trained horse to race after their mid-season rest.
The seven-year-old gelding travelled strongly during the three-mile two-furlong 19 fence race, which saw it track the leaders before leading easy going into the last.
He was briefly overtaken but soon went clear for a comfortable win, beating Big River, who was no match for Empire De Maulde’s stride.
Speaking to Scottish racing news reporter, Gordon Brown, Langholm-based James Ewart said: “It would be nice to bring the Scottish National back to the Borders and he will have a break now before we prepare him for Ayr in April.
“He might not even run over fences before then as he could have a spin or two in hurdle company.
“He’s a very versatile and classy horse as he has good form over a variety of distances.”
It was not the only race to see a good result for James Ewart.
The trainer also saw a second-place finish with Muhtamar, with jockey Alan Doyle in the saddle at Ayr on Monday.
The two-mile nine-hurdle race was eventually won by the favourite, Gentleman De Mai, but had held on to a lead before being outpaced in the final 110 yards.
For Iain Jardine, there were a number of notable results during the week, however, only one win, again at Kelso.
Kevin Brogan was the jockey in charge for that three-mile two-furlong race on The Ogle Gogle Man, a race which saw two horses pull-up and one fall.
Five second-place finishes were seen at Carlisle, Newcastle, and Ayr, with Langholm’s Jamie Gormley not seeing any not seeing any top six finishes in his two races.
A number of Iain Jardine races are scheduled for the coming week, including at Musselburgh and Ascot.
The next scheduled races for James Ewart are at the weekend in Carlisle with Brayhill, Cellar Vie, Juge Et Parti, and Karismatik.
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