THE mid-January lull in jumps racing allowed all-weather flat racing to grab back some of the limelight. The best timefigures achieved on the surface in the period under review were by Doc Sportello and Justice Good, the one-two in a Fast-Track Qualifier at Newcastle on Thursday, who both ran to 109.

That qualifies Doc Sportello for the Sprint Final at Lingfield Park on Good Friday, but a significant rival to him had reappeared the day before, when Pretend – the Sprint Final winner in 2015 – won a minor contest at Kempton Park.