Ralph Beckett will be looking for stable stalwart Kinross to shine in what could be a transitional year for the Hampshire handler, although he still has genuine Classic aspirations with the likes of Task Force.

Kinross took his tally of wins to 10 last season when securing Grade Two victories in the Lennox Stakes at Goodwood and the City of York Stakes at York.

He then signed off with elite-level runner-up efforts in the Prix de la Foret at ParisLongchamp and Ascot’s British Champions Sprint Stakes, taking his career earnings to over £1.75million.

Now aged seven, the Marc Chan-owned gelding has an important role to play following the departure of some high-profile stablemates.

“We’ve lost a few; Prosperous Voyage, Lezoo, Westover, but Kinross is still around and doing work, showing all his old enthusiasm,” Beckett told Sky Sports Racing.

“He’s in good shape and he’ll start at Ascot in the Jubilee and then we’ll work our way through the rest of the year. He’s in good form and he looks like he’s retained all his enthusiasm, so we’re looking forward to him, as ever.”

Task Force is quoted at between 14-1 and 20-1 for the 2000 Guineas after following up two wins with second place behind Vandeek in the Middle Park at Newmarket, while Skellet is rated a lively outsider for the 1000 Guineas.

Beckett added: “Task Force is training well and at the moment we’ll go straight to Newmarket for the Guineas.

“It’s difficult to know how good he is because he was never a six-furlong horse, either on pedigree or on physique. We stuck at six because it was working and he was quite a free-running horse as a two-year-old.

“He’s settled down a lot over the winter, so we’re looking forward to seeing what he can do.

“Skellet was second in the Oh So Sharp, she’ll probably go for the Guineas as well, she’s done well over the winter.

“There’s a couple of others and a few for the Oaks, plus we’ve got a few Derby entries, including Feigning Madness, who beat Harper’s Ferry on debut, so lots to look forward to. Hopefully, we’ll shake something out.”

Paul Nicholls showed he is firmly up for a battle in the jump trainers’ championship by adding just over £59,000 to his tally when Regent’s Stroll galloped on strongly to land the Goffs UK Spring Sale Bumper at Newbury.

The five-year-old, who hails from the same family as the mighty Denman, was sent off as the 7-2 joint-favourite favourite but looked to have it all to do under a 4lb penalty when only fourth at the two-furlong pole.

However, he picked up in impressive fashion for Harry Cobden from that point on and ultimately powered to a five-length triumph ahead of Don’t Mind If I Do.

Nicholls had started the day approximately £80,000 behind Dan Skelton, who boosted his hopes of securing a first title success when Heltenham battled on to land the £20,812 first prize on offer in the Get Best Odds Guaranteed At BetVictor Handicap Chase.

Sir Psycho made the evens favourite work hard for victory but Harry Skelton conjured up one last surge from his mount in the closing stages to get up by a neck.

Having previously scored in the Greatwood Gold Cup over the same course and distance, Heltenham was cut to 14-1 with Coral for the Topham Chase at Aintree.

Goodwin produced a brave front-running display to land the opening John Haine Memorial Novices’ Hurdle for Chris and Freddie Gordon.

The six-year-old was challenged down the home staight by hot favourite Cannock Park and Lario but showed great spirit to see them off by half a length and three-quarters of a length, to oblige at 3-1.

Following a lengthy delay due to a medical incident, Irish raider I Love My Baie came with a late charge to land the Bet In-Play On Racing With BetVictor Novices’ Handicap Hurdle.

With J J Slevin deputising for the injured Daryl Jacob, Stuart Crawford’s 22-1 shot managed to reel in Pretending to prevail by a length and a quarter.

All The Glory made a mockery of his 25-1 starting price when romping home by nine lengths in the Grade Two British EBF BetVictor ‘National Hunt’ Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle.

Jonjo O’Neill junior was always travelling sweetly on his father’s seven-year-old and the only worrying moment he had was when having to avoid El Elefante following her fall at the final flight.

Robbie Dunne came with a smooth and well-timed challenge on 100-30 chance Rath Gaul Hill to win the Colleagues Celebration Of Business Handicap Chase by a comfortable length and a quarter from Duhallow Tommy.

David Egan’s new role as retained rider for Amo Racing got off to the best possible start when Mr Professor came home clear in the William Hill Lincoln at Doncaster, with the jockey hoping it signals the beginning of a fruitful partnership.

Many were surprised when Egan left the relatively secure role of riding the majority of Roger Varian’s string to take up the number one position with Kia Joorabchian’s increasingly prominent operation.

Several leading riders have already gained and lost what is now a high-profile job, but the prospect of riding the likes of King Of Steel, Ornellaia, Bucanero Fuerte and a whole host of expensive juveniles was a tempting one.

Having spent the winter riding abroad, Egan was at the Curragh on Monday to win the first juvenile race of 2023 on Arizona Blaze, and by adding the first major handicap of the season on Dominic Ffrench Davis’ five-year-old it could not have been a better start.

“It’s a fantastic start to the year. I’m not going to lie, it was a surprise to me how easy he took me into the race at the two-pole,” he said of his 33-1 winner.

“It was an outstanding performance really, I know he was getting plenty of weight from a lot of the runners, but it’s a fantastic performance.

“Doncaster has been a lucky place for me, I obviously won my first Classic here (St Leger on Eldar Eldarov), but the Lincoln is the race every winter that you build towards. I’ve obviously been away, but the Lincoln is that special race that kick-starts the year, so it’s great to win.”

The sole Irish raider for the race was Fozzy Stack’s Chazzesmee, sent off the 5-2 favourite following his easy success in the Irish version last weekend.

“What was going through my head was the Irish Lincolnshire last week, I rode Raadobarg in that and I gave Joey Sheridan a lead all the way to the furlong pole on Chazzesmee and he quickened up by me,” said Egan, who won the Saudi Cup and Juddmonte International with Mishriff when he was retained by Prince Faisal.

“I got into the stalls today and who was next to me! I looked at Joey and he just said ‘same again?’. I knew he was behind me the whole way, but when my lad quickened up, he quickened up really well – and as he has stamina, he was able to sustain that all the way to the line.”

As for taking the Amo job, Egan could well have joined at just the right time.

He went on: “It’s a very exciting year, you dream of getting a job like this and he (Joorabchian) has got such an array of horses, from older horses like King Of Steel to Classic contenders like Bucanero Fuerte.

“And Amo Racing in recent times have been renowned for two-year-olds coming through, they had a lovely one win at the Curragh last week. They are a great team to have a connection with.

“They’ve got ambition to win and be the best, we understand that will take time but they are still relatively new, the purple colours have only been seen in the last five or six years – when I started in racing, Amo Racing wasn’t even a thing.

“To see their progress and for me to land a job of this nature so soon in my career is great and I hope we have a lot of success in the future.”

Ryan Loft scored late on to give Port Vale a crucial 1-0 victory at Burton to end their 14-game winless run.

The striker pounced seven minutes from time to give Vale a first win of 2024 and pull themselves to within three points of Sky Bet League One safety.

Vale’s James Wilson fired the first effort of the game into the side netting and Burton keeper Jamal Blackman had to tip Nathan Smith’s goalbound header from a corner over the bar.

Albion’s best moments came from Mark Helm, the midfielder agonisingly wide with a curling effort while Connor Ripley had to come out of his goal to block him after an exchange of passes with Joe Hugill.

Burton captain John Brayford poked wide early in the second half before Vale’s Ben Garrity struck the post from Tom Sang’s corner.

The decisive moment came on a counterattack, Loft initially crossing for Ethan Chislett and, when the striker’s shot bounced back off the post, he was there to smash the ball in from close range.

Derby’s promotion hopes were dealt a major blow as they suffered a narrow 1-0 League One defeat at midtable Northampton.

The Cobblers’ first win in six games – and their first ever over Derby – came thanks to Sam Hoskins’ first-half strike, his 15th goal of the season.

Derby dominated possession early on and they should taken a 20th-minute lead but Martyn Waghorn side-footed the ball over with the goal at his mercy.

Northampton struck against the run of play midway through the first half when Louis Appere chased down a long ball and showed brilliant vision to pick out Hoskins, who volleyed first time into the bottom corner.

The visitors responded well but they could not find a leveller before half-time despite Ebou Adams twice going close, first denied by Sam Sherring’s goal-line clearance and then heading over when well placed.

Nathaniel Mendez-Laing almost converted Kane Wilson’s cross after the restart before Manny Monthe hit the post at the other end.

Derby applied plenty of late pressure but could find no way through Northampton’s resilient rearguard and their misery was compounded by a straight red card for Sonny Bradley in stoppage-time.

Paul George insists the Los Angeles Clippers are not focusing on what the New Orleans Pelicans are doing as they battle it out for the Western Conference fourth seed.

The Clippers beat the Portland Trail Blazers 125-117 on Friday, while the soaring Pelicans have won eight of their last 10 games.

Los Angeles are a game-and-a-half ahead of the Pelicans in the race for the No.4 seed.

But George, who led the Clippers with 31 points, is paying little attention to New Orleans' form.

"We're not looking at them," George said.

"It's more about us. We've got to play well and we're in the driver's seat. So it's more about us."

With the Clippers holding a large lead in the final quarter, coach Tyronn Lue was able to rest George and fellow star Kawhi Leonard, who added 22 points.

Lue said: "I just want us to lock in and be healthy."

The West is tough anyway, no matter who we play or where you play. Whether you start at home, start on the road, it's going to be tough.

"So it doesn't really bother me or phase me in any way. We've just got to be healthy."

Lue will be buoyed, then, by the impending return of Russell Westbrook. 

He has been out for three weeks since he underwent surgery on a fractured hand.

Westbrook, though, is expected to return to action next week.

Judd Trump is one win away from a fifth ranking title of the season after beating Jackson Page in the semi-finals of the World Open.

Trump will face China’s Ding Junhui in the final in Yushan after beating an unfortunate Page 6-2, the Welshman cutting his finger while taking his cue out of its case before the match.

“The buckle of the case ripped the skin on my finger,” Page said. “I was praying for it not to bleed, but then it started bleeding.

“I tried putting a plaster on, but then I couldn’t feel the cue so I had to take it off. It’s not an ideal start in your first semi-final.”

Trump, who won this event the last time it was staged in 2019, opened with a break of 122 and won four frames in a row following the interval after Jackson’s break of 72 had made it 2-2.

“It was a scrappy game, neither of us played well, we both missed a lot of balls,” Trump said.

“It was Jackson’s first semi-final and he didn’t really settle, my experience probably made the difference.

“I haven’t played that well this week, I have scraped my way through with sheer determination, but that has been the case at other tournaments I have won this season. Hopefully things click in the final.”

Victory in the final would give world number two Trump a 28th career ranking title, moving him level with Steve Davis on the all-time list and behind only Ronnie O’Sullivan, Stephen Hendry and John Higgins.

The other semi-final proved a tense affair between Ding and Neil Robertson, which went to a deciding frame.

Breaks of 67 and 118 had seen Robertson open up an early 3-1 lead.

Ding, though, responded with two half-century runs of his own to edge back in front.

Robertson made 128 in the ninth frame despite becoming frustrated with the frequent interruptions from mobile phones in the noisy crowd, the Australian appearing to point out one serial offender to the referee.

However, Ding responded again as he took a tense 10th frame with a break of 68.

Then after Robertson had missed a chance to wrap up victory when looking set on a break of 53, the world number nine clinched a hard-earned place in the final with a run of 24 to win the deciding frame 70-56.

Mr Professor was too clever for the rest with a power-packed display in the William Hill Lincoln at Doncaster.

Sent off at 33-1, the Dominic Ffrench Davis-trained five-year-old was drawn in stall two but ended up more towards the middle after David Egan – celebrating a big winner so soon after becoming number one rider for owners Amo Racing – asked his mount to quicken a furlong and a half from home.

Lattam was a length and a half back in second, with Navagio two lengths further away in third, but there was never any danger to the winner once he had flown.

Fozzy Stack’s Chazzesmee was the well-backed 5-2 favourite, chasing an unprecedented double after winning the Irish equivalent last weekend, but while he moved with some menace, he could never quite get into it, eventually just being edged out for fourth by Alpha Crucis.

But there was huge disappointment for David Menuisier, with last year’s winner Migration planting himself in the stalls as the gates opened.

Cieren Fallon produced Montassib to perfection in winning the William Hill Cammidge Trophy Stakes at Doncaster.

Content to sit at the back of the field until just over a furlong out, Fallon weaved his way through on the William Haggas-trained 4-1 chance to beat 3-1 joint-favourite Marshman by a neck, with the other market leader Orazio another length and a quarter back.

It did look like Marshman had done enough after hitting the front, but his supporters were sunk by Fallon’s late surge, on a horse who ended last season with victory in the valuable Coral Sprint Trophy at York and is now a Listed winner.

It was Fallon’s first winner since returning from a lengthy injury.

He said: “Last year, he was a frustrating horse for me because I felt I should have won the Ayr Gold Cup on him, but we at least ended the season with a win at York.

“I rode him work the other week and I said to the boss he’d improved again, he’d got quicker. He was such an easy ride today, anyone could have won on him.

“I’m very lucky that I was looked after well at Oaksey House, they’ve spent a lot of hours with me, I took my time as I was off for four and a half months, I didn’t want to come back too soon, I wanted to make sure I was 100 per cent.

“I’ve been back riding out the last three weeks and the boss has put me on some quiet horses to give me some confidence that way. I had a spin yesterday and I feel great, I feel better than ever and I don’t feel like I’ve lost any race-sharpness at all.

“I’m in a really great position, I’m very lucky to be riding horses like this.”

Assistant trainer Maureen Haggas said: “I thought Cieren gave him a lovely ride – it was a bit testing about a furlong out, but he got there.

“He was a talented two-year-old, then early the following year he had a problem with his heart, so he had the whole year off.

“He’s really done nothing but improve since then, he got his act together at the end of last year and he’s carrying on now. I think he needs a bit of cut to be seen at his best.

“We thought he was quite big today, as he had a good blow in his work, but he doesn’t look like he’s had much of a race today.

“He’s a lovely horse, one of those lovely people, so straightforward.”

The mercurial Look Back Smiling provided Gemma Tutty with the biggest success of her training career when winning the William Hill Epic Boost Spring Mile at Doncaster.

Bought out of Ed Dunlop’s stable by Nick Bradley for what now looks a snip at £10,000, the four-year-old was defying a career-high mark of 83.

A winner in heavy ground at Town Moor last October, he had conditions to suit once more and was delivered perfectly by 5lb claimer Brandon Wilkie.

The only worry was that under pressure he drifted into Jamie Spencer on the 5-1 favourite Thunder Roar, bidding to give Tony Coyle and Kaine Wood a first winner since the start of their new joint venture. The stewards left the original result alone, though.

Tutty said of the 17-2 winner: “As you could see in the final furlong, he’s not the most straightforward and he doesn’t make life easy for his jockeys.

“That’s another fantastic run at this track though, so we’re going to have to look at coming back here.

“He doesn’t do a stroke at home. In his work, we put the least experienced jockeys on him and just play catch me if you can, then he just keeps going and going.”

She went on: “He won three races last year, but I suppose in racing like he does, it’s protected him from the handicapper. It’s just a shame he needs the ground this soft because some of those big handicaps in the summer would be perfect for him.

“We’ve had a really good start to the year, we’ve targeted the All-Weather Championships, so we’ve had more runners than we’d normally have and they’ve been running well, but you can’t have a better start to the turf season than this.

“It’s my biggest win, I suppose, we’ve got about 20 horses in and the staff have worked so hard all winter, the staff have been up and down that motorway all winter, so I can’t thank them enough.

“Nick Bradley has a few horses with me now, so it’s nice to repay the faith he has shown in me.”

Dylan Cunha put a feather in the cap of his training career in Britain as Zminiature landed the William Hill EBF Brocklesby Stakes at Doncaster.

Traditionally the curtain-raiser for the Flat season, this time the juvenile contest – won 12 months ago by Persian Force, who went on to prove very smart – was the second race on the Town Moor card.

A Group One-winning handler in his native South Africa, Cunha is now based in Newmarket, and in this 16-1 winner he looks to have a nice colt on his hands.

Given a patient ride by Rhys Clutterbuck, the Territories youngster moved smoothly through runners to pick up long-timer leader Paddy’s Courage inside the final furlong, before keeping on nicely to hold Bob The Bandit and Indication Ember by a length and a short head.

Cunha said: “It was expected. We really fancied him. He’s small but he’s tough and does everything right. It’s nice to get a good early two-year-old winner.

“I said to the owners halfway through the race ‘it’s been a great experience, he’s learning to race’, as it looked like he was going to be fourth or fifth.

“We took him to Chelmsford for a gallop last Monday, we did all the work that needed to be done.

“I’ve got to thank the Sarkar family, they were the first owners in the UK to support me, so to pay them back with a Brocklesby winner is massive.

“His name is Zminiature because he’s tiny, he’s only up to my chest!

“We started with three horses 18 months ago but we’re up to 50 now, 25 of those are two-year-olds. It’s been hard work, 18-hour days, but I’ve got to thank the team at home, I just conduct it all.

“There’s a conditions race at Chester and a Listed race at Sandown, then after that we’ll take stock.

“I’m pleased for Rhys, I don’t think he gets the opportunities he deserves but he’s quite softly spoken and in this game you’ve got to make a bit of noise and talk yourself into jobs, but it meant I was able to get him. He’s a great jockey, I love him.”

Silvestre de Sousa made the best possible start to the new turf season when teaming up with Roger Varian’s Charyn to win the William Hill Doncaster Mile.

The former champion jockey has only recently returned from a 10-month suspension picked up in Hong Kong for breaching betting rules.

De Sousa, 43, has been getting his eye in on the all-weather recently but will have been thrilled to pick up the first Listed race of the season on the Group One-placed Charyn.

Last year’s winner Astral Beau made another bold bid for Pam Sly but she had no answer close home to the 2-1 winner, who streaked three and a half lengths clear under hands and heels riding.

“He’s a lovely horse, he just felt a little bit lazy out there,” said De Sousa.

“He’s ended up picking up really well. There wasn’t much of a pace, so I just rode the race to suit him.”

With David Egan taking up his role with Amo Racing this season, Varian will be employing a new team of jockeys, with De Sousa in line to pick up plenty, along with James Doyle.

“That was a nice start to the season. Last year, he put up some really good efforts in the Irish Guineas, St James’s Palace Stakes and Sussex Stakes against some top opposition,” said Varian.

“He was a Group Two-winning two-year-old, he’s always been a nice horse and had some big questions asked of him last year, hopefully this can be his year.

“He looks to have done well through the winter, he’s a stronger horse this year and we were always keen to come here just to try and get a win on the board and build him back up again.

“I was worried about the ground, as while he has run some good races on testing ground, he’s at his best on a sounder surface. I think he’ll go on any ground.

“I’d like to go to Sandown for the Group Two (Bet365 Mile) and then the Lockinge.”

On the jockey situation, Varian added: “We’re in a good position. Some of our owners have their own jockeys, James Doyle is going to ride quite a few for us when available.

“Silvestre has been in riding work, I’ve got Jack Mitchell to call upon, Cam Noble, Raul de Silva, Aiden Keeley, so I’ve got a good team and they are all in every morning putting in the work, so hopefully they’ll all get opportunities.

“Silvestre is a good jockey, we like him a lot, we’ve known him a long time.”