THE awards presentations at Sandown contained few if any surprises. Nicky Henderson and Richard Johnson had things sewn up quite some time ago and there were no late upsets.

The champion jockey is universally popular and retained his title with ease. The thing with Johnson is that his priorities and loyalties are rock solid. After sickness in the yard, Philip Hobbs never quite recovered and is already looking forward to next season. But Johnson can count on Henry Daly and Gordon Elliott, to name but two, and is also much in demand when available in big races – Native River in the Gold Cup being the perfect example.