Simply no place quite like Ripon for Fortamour

Fortamour registered his sixth success at Ripon when winning the Wilmot-Smith Memorial Handicap for a second time on Monday.

The North Yorkshire venue tends to lend itself to course specialists due to its unique ridges and Ben Haslam’s sprinter has well and truly found the knack.

Winner of the corresponding race in 2021 and second in it 12 months ago, his fortunes could not have differed more to last year’s winner Bay Breeze who was slowly away and never out of last place.

Ed Bethell’s three-year-old Kings Merchant tried to make all but the eight-year-old Fortamour prevailed by a neck at 11-2.

Haslam will now consider returning for the Great St Wilfrid later in the month, although he accepts that may represent a different challenge altogether.

“He loves it here. I just thought today on this ground he needed to be forward, as if you are behind the pace here when it’s quick it is very hard to make it up,” he said.

“Normally we tuck him and and take our time, but I was quite confident at halfway because he always keeps galloping.

“He’ll be out of the Great St Wilfrid consolation now as that is a 0-80 so our hand might be forced into the main race, he might as well, but I think it’s probably a bridge too far.”