Hewick – a horse who cost just £800 – came from last to first to win a remarkable Ladbrokes King George VI Chase at Kempton.

Trained by Shark Hanlon and ridden by man of the moment Gavin Sheehan, he looked to have no chance at all for most of the race.

Shishkin had taken up the running from Frodon with over a mile to run and injected pace which had seemed too much for Hewick (12-1).

Turning into the straight Shishkin was going the best, with Bravemansgame and Allaho being ridden to keep in touch.

Over the second-last Shishkin was still seemingly in control, but having jumped the fence perfectly well he lost his footing a stride or two after, unseating Nico de Boinville.

That left Allaho in front and he was being challenged again by Bravemansgame, but coming into contention and just hitting full stride was Hewick.

Sheehan got a great jump out of him at the last and he swept on by to win by a length and a half from last year’s winner Bravemansgame.

Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr described officiating standards as "disgusting" after Nikola Jokic made 18 free throws in the Denver Nuggets' Christmas-Day win over his team.

Jokic made all 18 of his free throw attempts as the Nuggets posted their fifth successive win, which represented a career-high tally as he finished with 26 points in his team's 120-114 success.

Ten of those came in the third quarter as Jokic drew foul after foul from the Golden State defense, prompting Kerr to lash out at what he sees as a league-wide problem.

"I have a problem with how we are legislating the defense out of the game," Kerr said after the Warriors slipped to 15-15.

"We are enabling players to B.S. their way to the foul line. If I were a fan, I wouldn't have wanted to watch the second half of that game. It was disgusting. 

"It was just baiting refs into calls, but the refs have to make those calls. The players are really smart in this league. 

"For the last decade, they've gotten smarter and smarter. We have enabled the players, and they are taking full advantage. It's a parade to the free throw line, and it's disgusting to watch."

Four-time NBA champion Stephen Curry, who was held to 18 points, echoed Kerr's sentiments as he said: "It does cater to the guys who can sell calls. 

"There is physicality, but it's tough because it is inconsistent, at times, on either side.

"On a night like tonight, when you feel there is physicality on one side and then ticky-tack on the other, it changes the complexity of the game. 

"I'm not saying we don't foul, but consistency is key when understanding how you can defend."

Jokic, though, denied actively trying to sell calls and said aggression became key to his performance after a slow start.

"I was missing shots, so I was just trying to be aggressive in another way, maybe play a little more physical" Jokic told ESPN.

"It just happened to be that kind of night. This is the most I've ever had."

National Hunt superstar Constitution Hill made a perfect return to action when strolling to victory in the Ladbrokes Christmas Hurdle at Kempton.

Winning the race for the second season in succession, Nicky Henderson’s charge was sent off the 1-12 favourite taking on just four rivals.

This ended up being his first race of the season after plans to run him in the Fighting Fifth, originally at Newcastle and then in the rearranged version at Sandown, were spoiled by the weather.

While that may have given his rivals some hope he was a little behind schedule, those thoughts were soon banished.

Paul Nicholls’ Rubaud set the pace and Harry Cobden tried to wind it up before the turn for home, but Nico de Boinville was sat in his slipstream.

He pulled Constitution Hill out to challenge on the run to the second-last and the champion hurdler absolutely flew it, taking two lengths out of Rubaud and immediately putting the race to bed.

He was allowed to cruise home for a nine-and-a-half-length win, with Coral subsequently trimming him to 1-3 from 2-5 to retain his Champion Hurdle title in March.

Dallas Mavericks coach Jason Kidd said the team can never take Luka Doncic for granted after he brought up 10,000 career points in their Christmas-Day win over the Phoenix Suns.

Doncic reached the milestone in style, scoring 50 points in a 128-114 road win as he became just the fourth player in league history to post a half-century of points on Christmas Day, after Bernard King, Wilt Chamberlain and Rick Barry.

Having entered the game 11 points short of bringing up five figures, he has reached 10,000 points in just 358 games. Only Chamberlain, Michael Jordan, Elgin Baylor, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Oscar Robertson and George Gervin have done so in fewer outings.

Doncic's big moment came early on when he hit a 34-foot three-pointer in the first quarter, and Kidd heaped praise upon his talisman after his dominant outing.  

"As I've always said, we can't take him for granted when he's feeling it," Kidd said. "You're just trying to get him the ball as much as possible. 

"You're also trying to figure out how to get him some rest because we weren't going to take him out there in the second half, so we needed to ask him or someone to be able to run the offense.

"I thought he did a great job of letting other guys bring the ball up, but when he's going like that, you've got to get him the ball, and you trust your quarterback's going to do the right thing."

Asked how it felt to reach the landmark, Doncic said: "Always, when this kind of award comes with a win, it's even more fun.

"It was a tough road game, and we won. So, outside of the 10K and 50 points, we won the game. So, I'm really happy.

"I love playing in these environments, especially away. It's fun for me. When you make a shot, the whole gym is quiet, so that's the best feeling in the world."

Doncic's mammoth performance proved Grayson Allen's 32-point haul for the Suns redundant, with Kevin Durant also tacking on 16 for the hosts.

Phoenix are now 14-15 and sit 11th in the Western Conference, having lost five of their last six games including each of their last three in a row.

Star guard Devin Booker said of the Suns' slump: "We just have to get it together. 

"That's on me, that's on coach, that's on KD, all the leaders that we have in here to make sure that we're prepared."

Nicky Henderson’s Jango Baie battled on gamely to see off Favour And Fortune to win the William Hill Formby Novices’ Hurdle at Aintree.

The race was formerly registered as the Tolworth Hurdle and was being run for the first time at Aintree instead of Sandown.

That was a move that did not go down too well with Henderson at the time, although he may have a different take now after the four-year-old, having just his second race under rules, provided James Bowen with a first Grade One success.

In a race which highlighted the ups and downs of racing perfectly, Bowen’s brother Sean, riding Gordon Elliott’s Farren Glory, seemed to be travelling best of all before falling in the home straight.

Jango Baie (17-2) had beaten Ben Pauling’s Tellherthename narrowly on their respective hurdling debuts at Ascot and the two met again. But Pauling’s charge, having jumped and travelled well until the home straight, soon dropped away.

It was Cannock Park who led for much of the journey and he did not give way until the second-last when the front two pulled away, with Jango Baie winning by two and three-quarter lengths after a good tussle.

Bowen told Racing TV: “It went well, I travelled well, he was a bit keen but he was a lot keener the last day.

“He finished his race off really well and I think he’ll probably want a bit further in time.

“Sean looked to be going really well and at the time I didn’t know what he had left, he did look to be going well, though.

“The best I’d done in a Grade One was finishing third on Top Notch in the Long Walk (2018), that’s the closest I’d been before today.

“He hit the line hard and he’s obviously improving, he’s a Grade One horse now so hopefully he’ll have some nice targets.”

Il Est Francais put up a sparkling jumping display to win the Ladbrokes Kauto Star Novices’ Chase on his British debut at Kempton.

Part-owned by an Englishman in Richard Kelvin-Hughes, ridden by one in James Reveley and trained jointly by another Englishman in Noel George, he was representing France in no uncertain terms.

Still only five, Il Est Francais had carried almost all before him in France and from an early stage had most of his rivals under pressure with his cruising speed and accurate jumping.

Whether meeting fences on a long or short stride, the 13-8 chance made only one semblance of an error over the three miles and Reveley, son of former trainer Keith and a multiple champion jockey in France since moving there, always knew what he had underneath him.

Paul Nicholls’ Hermes Allen briefly looked a threat but once Il Est Francais was asked to put the race to bed, he soon opened up a distance between them again and in the end won by 11 lengths.

George trains in partnership with Amanda Zetterholm, while the winner is jointly owed by Haras De Saint-Voir, who also bred the gelding.

Kala Conti upstaged her better-fancied stablemate Mighty Bandit to provide Gordon Elliott with a third victory in the last four runnings of the Mercedes-Benz South Dublin Juvenile Hurdle at Leopardstown.

The Cullentra handler saddled Zanahiyr and Fil Dor to claim back-to-back wins in the Grade Two contest in 2020 and 2021, while subsequent Triumph Hurdle heroine Lossiemouth struck gold for Willie Mullins last season.

Having made a big impression on his hurdling debut at Punchestown, Mighty Bandit was the 13-8 favourite to double his tally in the hands of Elliott’s stable jockey Jack Kennedy, with Kala Conti rated his biggest threat by bookmakers at 7-2.

The latter was narrowly beaten by the reopposing Nurburgring in a Grade Three at Fairyhouse last month, but under a positive ride from Danny Gilligan turned the tables in determined fashion – digging deep to beat the Mullins-trained Kargese by three-quarters of a length, with Nurburgring a close-up third and Mighty Bandit disappointing in ninth.

“It was a good performance, she was tough,” Elliott said of the winner. “She didn’t lose much in defeat the last day, only that she got beat. We’re happy today.

“I’d say she likes a good gallop, she’ll stay very well.”

Of Mighty Bandit, he added: “Jack said he thought he was cantering everywhere but he just cut out. We’ll get him checked out and see.”

Edward O’Grady believes he has found a horse to send him back into the big time after No Flies On Him made an impressive debut under rules in the opening race of the Leopardstown Christmas Festival.

While no stranger to top-level success having trained the likes of Golden Cygnet, Sound Man and Back In Front, the veteran trainer has not saddled a Grade One winner since 2011.

Having won his sole start in the point-to-point field, when he beat the Formby Novices’ Hurdle winner Jango Baie, the JP McManus-owned No Flies On Him was prominent in the market at 3-1 for the TRI Equestrian Maiden Hurdle.

Ridden positively from the outset by Mark Walsh, the Westerner gelding found plenty in the straight to score by a length and three-quarters.

“We’re absolutely thrilled with him,” said O’Grady.

“I chose him as a three-year-old at the Derby Sale, JP very kindly let me pick one out. He in turn then sent him for a proper education, to boarding school with Derek O’Connor, who did a fantastic job with him. Then he came back to me this autumn.

“He has a wonderful pedigree – his great grandmother is the dam of Makybe Diva, who won three Melbourne Cups.

“He looks like a very promising horse. I’ve had a lot of swans in the last few years and they’ve all turned out to be geese, but I think this fella might stay a swan.

“He’ll have to be entered in a Grade One anyway and, fingers crossed, I think he might just get there.

“Hopefully he stays lucky, stays right and healthy. I’ve been waiting for one like this for too long, thank God the number six bus has arrived and I’d love if a second one would arrive in a hurry!”

McManus and Walsh were widely expected to complete a quickfire double in the following Thorntons Recycling Maiden Hurdle, with the highly-touted Naas bumper winner Mirazur West already prominent in ante-post lists for the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival ahead of his hurdling bow.

However, after racing keenly on the front end, the 5-6 shot was unable to fend off the challenge of Gordon Elliott’s King Of Kingsfield (15-8), who was opening his account over timber after three successive runner-up finishes, including when chasing home stablemate Farren Glory in the Grade One Royal Bond at Fairyhouse three weeks ago.

Elliott said: “That was great. We were riding him all wrong and the last day we changed our minds in the Grade One.

“Jack (Kennedy) was delighted with the way he settled and he jumped well, so we’re very happy.

“He’s not a bad horse and to be honest he had disappointed me up until now as I always thought he was a proper horse. He might just come good now, I’d say the ground could be key to him as well.”

When asked if he could return to Leopardstown for the Dublin Racing Festival, he added: “I’d imagine he’ll head for a Grade One there all being well.”

Sam Thomas hailed Iwilldoit as “the horse of a lifetime” as he goes in search of a second win in the Coral Welsh National at Chepstow.

Gold Cup-winning rider Thomas has been training since 2015 and Iwilldoit has provided him with two of his biggest wins to date.

Not content with winning this marathon contest in 2021, some 383 days later without the aid of another run he landed the Classic Chase at Warwick.

His comeback this year was over hurdles at Aintree, a pleasing effort in a Pertemps qualifier where he finished two lengths behind the useful Gentleman At Arms.

The 10-year-old will now return to fences and Thomas is hoping he will be in his element when partnered by 7lb claimer Dylan Johnston.

“We’re absolutely over the moon with him and he’s in great form,” said Thomas.

“He had a prep run at Aintree a little while ago now and has had plenty of time to recover from that. He’s since had a couple of away days and is in a really good place, we’re really happy with him.

“He will want it as soft as possible and we have decided to claim off him as well, taking 7lb off his back. We just feel if we’re ever going to go and win it again – he’s not getting any younger – we just want to do everything we can to give him every chance.

“Dylan was put to me by Olly Murphy a while ago and I’ve since used him on another horse. He’s a very good young lad and has a wise head on young shoulders. It’s a lot of responsibility for a 7lb claimer in a big race and the last thing we want to do is put any pressure on a young lad, but he looks like he will be fine.

“He’s been amazing for us and he would be a horse of a lifetime for any yard really. We’ve won some nice, big races with him and fingers crossed we can keep him in one piece and this might not be his last Welsh National yet.”

Joe Tizzard will saddle The Big Breakaway, an eight-year-old who finished second in the race last year and is regular in these staying chases.

His most recent outing was in the Becher Chase at Aintree earlier in the month, where he was pulled up when not taking to the task over the Grand National fences.

The chestnut has had a day’s hunting to reignite his enthusiasm and Tizzard would love to see him go one better than last year to take the trophy run in memory of his late sister Kim Gingell.

“He let us down a bit in the Becher Chase, he just didn’t take to it – simple as that – but he didn’t have a hard race,” he said.

“He went hunting on Saturday and he proved last year that he’s capable of running a massive race.

“It’s the last year of the race being run in memory of Kim, so we will have the blinkers back on him and hope he runs a massive race. I think he has a big one in him, but he has let me down and we left the blinkers off over the big fences and now they are back on.

“He proved last year with a lot of weight he is capable of doing it, it just all needs to click.”

Fergal O’Brien’s team is in good form and he runs Autonomous Cloud in the race, a seven-year-old who made a winning start to the term when taking a Uttoxeter chase by six and a half lengths in November.

“He had his prep run at Uttoxeter a few weeks ago and if you could have planned a prep run, you couldn’t have planned it any better because there were three of them in a line and unfortunately one fell at the third-last and brought down the other one, so he had a gallop round for three miles but didn’t have a hard race,” O’Brien explained.

“That was ideal and he’s been training really well and we’re very happy with him.

“I think he had five or six runs as a novice over fences and he’s a lovely horse. If he’s not one for this Welsh National, he could be for another Welsh National or another National, he’s a beautiful horse.”

Gavin Sheehan is also in good from and he looks to extend a fine run with a ride on Jamie Snowden’s Super Survivor.

“I’m looking forward to him, he’s a lovely horse and had a great prep run,” he said.

“He ticks a lot of boxes for the race and hopefully it goes well on the day.”

Other notable contenders include Gary Moore’s Nassalam, winner of the Welsh National Trial earlier in the month, and the Paul Nicholls duo of Complete Unknown and Truckers Lodge.

Michael O’Sullivan is looking to end a brilliant 2023 on a high when Marine Nationale makes his eagerly-awaited chasing debut at Leopardstown.

It has been a stellar year for the young Irishman who turned professional in September 2022 and on joining forces with burgeoning handler Barry Connell, struck gold on the big stage numerous times.

Connell’s Good Land and Espanito Bello provided notable triumphs, but the ace in the pack was Marine Nationale, who gave O’Sullivan a taste of the big-time when winning the Royal Bond before following up in style at the Cheltenham Festival.

The classy Supreme Novices’ Hurdle winner now embarks on a novice chase campaign, with the Paddy Power From The Horses Mouth Podcast Beginners Chase on December 27 the first port of call for the unbeaten six-year-old.

“He didn’t put a foot wrong and so far he is unbeaten in his career and obviously I am very lucky to be involved with him,” said O’Sullivan.

“He’s ran five times and won two Grade Ones, so it’s going to be hard to top last season, but we are very much looking forward to getting him over fences.

“It’s going to be a tougher ask and the horse is going to have to train on again, but we’re looking forward to it. It will be great to get him back on the racecourse and hopefully it goes well.

“All has gone well (so far), he’s very straightforward and hasn’t put a foot wrong. We just keep our fingers crossed all goes to plan.”

The belated chasing debut could be the first step on a journey connections hope takes them back to the Festival in March, where a rematch with Supreme runner-up Facile Vega in the Arkle could be on the cards.

“If he is as good as last year and hopefully we can get to March and get him to Cheltenham in the form he was last year, then you would be very much looking forward to that,” continued O’Sullivan.

“If it was a carbon copy (of the Supreme) that would be great, but that is going to be very hard to do. We’ll be trying our best.”

It was Marine Nationale that kick-started O’Sullivan and Connell’s association when they combined to claim a Punchestown bumper in May 2022.

Few could predict the success the duo would enjoy over the next 18 months, as O’Sullivan turned professional and repaid his loyal boss in spades as he swiftly became one of the weighing room’s brightest stars.

“After turning professional last September, I couldn’t have asked for it to have gone much better than it did,” added O’Sullivan.

“I was very lucky to come across some very nice horses for good people and got lots of support.”

O’Sullivan’s claim would quickly evaporate as he became one of the go-to men in the riding ranks and finished the season picking up rides for the likes of Willie Mullins and Gordon Elliott, scoring aboard the latter’s Jazzy Matty at the Cheltenham Festival.

However, he saved his best performances in the saddle for those trained by Connell with the duo striking at Grade One level three times – twice with Marine Nationale and once with the talented Good Land.

“To win three Grade Ones in my first season as a professional, I’m under no illusion how lucky I am to come across those horses,” said O’Sullivan.

“Some people will go through their whole career looking for a Grade One horse and to find horses of that ability and for Barry to put his faith in me and for things to have gone so well, I will always be very grateful.

“It was a case of right place, right time for me and in racing you need a lot of luck and I was lucky I got a break and thanks to him, other trainers and owners have had the faith to put me up as well.”

The culmination of O’Sullivan’s terrific breakthrough season came at the Cheltenham Festival when an opening day double was highlighted by an ice-cool display in the saddle aboard Marine Nationale, a statement performance from man and horse at the very beginning of racing’s biggest week.

“It was the stuff dreams are made of and it is what you have been getting up as a kid to do,” reflected the rider.

“For that dream to come true was amazing and that whole week was magical. I was going there with some nice chances and high hopes of getting a winner, so to win the first race, the Supreme, in front of the crowd and with the atmosphere was amazing and then the other winner was a bonus.”

Baltimore’s defense had five interceptions and four sacks, Lamar Jackson had another strong game to help his MVP candidacy and the Ravens beat the San Francisco 49ers 33-19 in a Christmas Days showdown between conference leaders.

Brock Purdy, who entered the game as an MVP candidate, had the worst game of his career, throwing four interceptions and no touchdowns before he was replaced by Sam Darnold after the game was out of hand.

Kyle Hamilton intercepted two of Purdy’s passes, while Marlon Humphrey, Patrick Queen and Marcus Williams also came up with picks.

Baltimore led just 16-12 at halftime but outscored the 49ers 17-0 in the third quarter to put the game out of reach.

Jackson threw for 252 yards and two touchdowns, and the dual-threat quarterback was the Ravens’ leading rusher with 45 yards as the Ravens (12-3) extended their winning streak to five games.

Christian McCaffrey was the lone bright spot for the 49ers, rushing for 103 yards and a touchdown and adding six catches for 28 yards. He tied the Miami Dolphins’ Raheem Mostert for the NFL lead with 21 total touchdowns this season in the losing effort.

The loss dropped the 49ers (11-4) into a tie with the Detroit Lions and the Philadelphia Eagles for the best record in the NFC with two weeks to play in the regular season.

Hurts, Swift help Eagles end 3-game skid

Jalen Hurts set a single-season quarterback record by scoring his 15th rushing touchdown and added 300 yards through the air as the Philadelphia Eagles rediscovered their early-season form with a 33-25 win over the New York Giants.

Hurts scored on a “tush push” sneak play in the first quarter and added a second-quarter passing touchdown to help the Eagles end a three-game losing streak and keep their hopes of an NFC East title alive.

D’Andre Swift had 92 of Philadelphia’s 170 rushing yards and scored from five yards out in his best performance since Week 3.

The Eagles led 20-3 at halftime, and the Giants benched former Cinderella story quarterback Tommy DeVito at the break for Tyrod Taylor. DeVito was 9 of 16 for 55 yards.

A 7-yard Saquon Barkley touchdown run and Adoree’ Jackson’s 76-yard interception return – and subsequent 2-point conversion – pulled the Giants to 20-18 at the end of the third.

New York never led, however, as Philadelphia rebounded with a 13-point fourth quarter.

The Eagles (11-4) stayed a full game ahead of Dallas in the NFC East after the Cowboys’ 22-20 loss to the Miami Dolphins on Saturday.

Raiders fluster Mahomes as Chiefs’ slump continues

Las Vegas scored defensive touchdowns on consecutive plays from scrimmage, Zamir White rushed for a career high 145 yards and the Raiders beat the slumping Kansas City Chiefs 20-14.

The Chiefs led 7-3 with five minutes remaining in the first half before Bilal Nichols returned an Isiah Pacheco fumble eight yards for a touchdown.

After the ensuing kickoff, Patrick Mahomes’ first-down pass was intercepted by Jack Jones and returned 33 for another score, giving the Raiders a 17-7 halftime lead.

Mahomes has struggled this month, going 1-3 in December and throwing five touchdowns to five interceptions.

Mahomes’ only touchdown of the day came on a 7-yard pass to Justin Watson with 2:42 remaining, but the Chiefs never got the ball back as White gained 43 and 15 yards on consecutive carries to clinch the game for Las Vegas.

The Raiders (7-8) snapped a six-game losing streak to the Chiefs (9-6), who failed to clinch an eighth consecutive AFC West title.

Baltimore Ravens intercepted Brock Purdy four times as they beat the San Francisco 49ers 33-19 in a Christmas Day showdown of the NFL teams with the best records.

Lamar Jackson threw two touchdown passes in 18 seconds during the third quarter as the Ravens moved to within one win of the AFC North title.

They are also one game ahead of the Miami Dolphins in the race for the top seed in the AFC with two matches remaining.

Purdy was intercepted on three of his first four drives as the 49ers slipped into a tie with the Philadelphia Eagles and the Miami Dolphins for the best record in the NFC.

The defeat ended San Francisco’s six-match winning streak.

The Eagles reignited their push for the NFL East title as they beat the New York Giants 33-25, ending a three-match losing run.

Jalen Hurts threw for one touchdown and broke the NFL record for most rushing scores in a season by a quarterback as he went over from a yard for his 15th of the season.

The win lifts the Eagle to 11-4 with a one-game lead over the Dallas Cowboys, who need to win their remaining games to ensure the divisional crown.

Taylor Swift watched on at the Arrowhead Stadium as boyfriend Travis Kelce and the Kansas City Chiefs failed to clinch the AFC West title after a shock 20-14 Christmas Day defeat to the Las Vegas Raiders.

Chiefs were bidding to put the seal on an eighth successive AFC West crown but a pair of touchdowns in the second quarter from Bilal Nichols and Jack Jones gave the Raiders a lead that the hosts could not overturn.

Justin Watson’s fourth-quarter touchdown gave the Chiefs hope but Raiders’ defence triumphed as they sealed back-to-back wins to move up to second in the division.