'We may not even finish the race' - Six horses dump jockeys in crazy scenes
'We may not even finish the race' cried a commentator as a bonkers event reached the finish line in New Zealand. Six of the seven horses facing the starter at Te Rapa were out of contention by the end of a chaotic first circuit, which left Uncle Charlie as the only one still going.
Bizarrely the seven-year-old had never won a race in 24 attempts before he was left with the 3900m contest at his mercy with Portia Matthews in the saddle.
But without other horses to race with, the maiden seemed to lose concentration, putting in some errant leaps which caused Matthews to have an issue with her tack.
"Get over it Uncle," said race caller George Simon. "Uncle Charlie.. I tell you what I think Portia Matthews might have lost her iron. Are you kidding me?"
"As we are down to two. Ladies and gentleman, fingers and toes crossed and everything else you can ask for, divine intervention. Let's will Uncle Charlie over the last fence in the Ken & Roger Browne Memorial. Here he comes! He's over."
Uncle Charlie, owned and trained by Stephen Beatson, finished a whopping 89 and three-quarters lengths ahead of Catch And Release, who was originally out of the race until Dean Parker decided to re-mount.
He had been caught up in mayhem at an earlier fence when a riderless horse ran straight across Canulovemeagain ($15), which unseated Corey Wiles.
Catch And Release refused to jump with another horse, as Uncle Charlie somehow scrambled over. "At this rate we may not finish the race - we may not have a finisher here!" said Simon.
As Zeefa Zed, Countryman and Fabulous Nancy had already exited, Uncle Charlie and Matthews had no other horses or jockeys in sight.
Cheered on by the crowd, the runner racing solo managed to get the job done, to make it a good day for Matthews who also took the Signature Homes Waikato Steeplechase (3900m) on Afterallthistime.
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