Gordon Elliott loses Trainers Championship, Dawerann gets first run of season

Whenever I read US sports reports for the teams I follow in America (Steelers, Knicks and Red Sox) there is always 2 headlines in one separated by a comma so I've employed that here. The final week of the 17/18 national hunt season and the finale of the head to head battle between Gordon and Willie Mullins for the Irish Trainers Championship took place at the Punchestown Festival. Gordon went in with a lead of over €500,000 and when The Storyteller led an Elliott 1,2,3 home on the first day after an unbelievable finish to the race that saw the leaders fall and another horse running out and taking another with him, you would be forgiven for thinking the luck was with GE. Willie came back on day 2 with 6 of the 7 winners and was suddenly in the lead by about €500,000. By Friday he had an unassailable lead to retain the championship proving why he has been the man for so long. Fantastic season from Gordon Elliott Racing regardless and they don't have long to wait for the season to start again - it finished Saturday and started again Sunday.

Dawerann seems to be a Racing Club favourite and he made his season debut in the final race of the season at Punchestown in a charity flat race with former jockey Davy Condon's sister Tina on board. He even got a mention in Gordon's Betfair blog. Not sure what happened at the start but he was a long way behind early on. He made his way through the field to finish 15th out of about 25. This was always going to be a chance for Dawerann to get some fitness as he isn't back in training that long and is known as a summer horse but with the ground still on the soft side he was always going to be up against it. He came out of it well. Hopefully the summer is more successful than the winter for GERC and we get into the winners enclosure at least once.