2025 Race Week 1 Highlights - London & The South and Scotland shine at Great Yarmouth

London & The South and Scotland were the standout teams as season five of Racing League started at Great Yarmouth, with both sides sending out three winners on the night.

London & The South lead a revitalised Scotland by two points with a haul of 158, while The East is third on 135 points. The front three have opened up daylight on the other teams, with Ireland next best on 90 points.

Admirable nine-year-old Andaleep headed up London & The South’s three winners as he gained a deserved success for Daniel & Claire Kubler in Race 7, having finished second in three Racing League contests last year.

Matt Chapman’s team also struck with Andrew Balding’s Fantasy World in Race 1 and the Chris Dwyer-trained Jimmy Speaking in Race 3, with the latter ridden by 7lb claimer Jack Dace.

Chapman said: “This is Andaleep’s third year in Racing League. He finished second in this race last year and I assume he was ignored in the betting because people thought the favourite Wave Rider had 20lb in hand.

“People say that we don’t get to know Flat horses in the same way we do Jump horses, but everyone watching tonight knows Andaleep. He is a warrior and has been superbly handled by Danny and Claire Kubler.

“This has been a good start but, as we know, this is a marathon, not a sprint. Tonight was the first leg and there are a lot of legs upcoming where I can drop the baton.”

With Alex Steedman taking over as team manager, Scotland reeled off three winners on the spin. Heather Main’s Mister Bluebird provided 17-year-old apprentice Mason Paetel with a birthday winner in Race 4, while Julie Camacho’s Solar Acclaim and the Charlie Johnston-trained Pole Star landed Races 5 and 6.

Steedman said: “This has been absolutely ridiculous! To be fair, I fancied Solar Acclaim and thought Pole Star would go close, but to have another winner and several placed horses on top of that is nuts.

“One of the ideas when I came is that we would try to give some opportunities to a couple of apprentices. We had a few on show tonight and I thought they rode great.

“We are in great shape, but this is the first of six weeks. Now it is going to be a question of juggling the balls. The best signing I made was getting James Owen on the team, his first time in Racing League. I also still have the genius Jim Goldie up my sleeve!”

Elsewhere, Ireland was on the scoresheet in Race 2 with the well-backed Tuco Salamanca for Ollie Sangster and Billy Loughnane.

Loughnane said: “I thought this looked a nice spot for Tuco Salamanca. I ride for the owners [Pompey Ventures] a bit, as they have horses with George Boughey, and they try to get me on when I can. This horse has had some near misses, but six furlongs on slow ground was perfect and it was a real nice performance.”

The East, Wales & The West, The North and Yorkshire failed to register a winner, with The East and the defending champions Wales & The West playing a joker in Race 5 and Race 7 respectively.

Andaleep’s jockey Richard Kingscote leads the jockey standings with 73 points. Loughnane is second on 65, while The East’s Daniel Muscutt is third on 63.

For full race results, league tables and lots more see the brilliant Racing League microsite from our partners AtTheRaces

See all the Week 1 race replay videos: