THIS is turning into a very good season for Worcestershire trainer Ian Williams and he added another prestigious race to his tally when London Prize ran out a narrow but fully deserving winner of the Grade 3 Matchbook Imperial Cup at Sandown on Saturday.

This is normally a very competitive handicap hurdle and it produced a good finish once again, although it was unusual to see only 13 lining up.

Given plenty of time by Tom O’Brien, London Prize, 10/1, made ground as eventual third Darebin moved through to lead with two to jump. He soon hit the front and kept on well to hold Nicky Henderson’s 5/1 favourite Fixe Le Kap by a hard-fought length, though he was never going to be caught.

A six-year-old by Teofilo and out of a Kris mare, London Prize may still win good races on the level, as that breeding suggests. Williams gave him an outing on the all-weather after a fall at Musselburgh but his confidence remained intact and he jumped well last week, also showing a nice turn of foot after briefly losing his pitch as they entered the closing stages.

Williams, who bought the winner out of John Ferguson’s yard for £70,000 in April, missed out because his car broke down on the way to the course.

A progressive sort, London Prize has now won five times in all for his new handler and has had only five outings over jumps.

The trainer said: “He had a nice weight in a competitive handicap and if he settled and travelled he had to have a chance.”

Owner John Forsyth has had 17 winners in the last 18 months. He is seeing the other side of the coin after losing his first two jumpers some 30 years ago and deciding to concentrate on the flat.

“London Prize likes soft ground and that’s why we decided to put him in,” he related. “I think he has a big race on the flat in him.”