The Boodles May Festival got underway today (Wednesday) under glorious blue skies and it proved to be a fitting start to our three-days.
On the racing front, the traditional Festival opener, the CAA Stellar Lily Agnes Stakes, was won by Karl Burke with his two-year-old filly, Ali Shuffle. The highlight races of the day, which is billed as Trials Day, were the Weatherbys Cheshire Oaks and the Boodles Chester Vase, key trials for the Oaks and Derby respectively, which take place at Epsom Downs Racecourse next month.
Both races were won by the Ballydoyle Maestro, Aidan O'Brien, with Minnie Hawk winning the fillies’ race and Lambourn the Boodles Chester Vase. Both horses are likely to head to Epsom in a few weeks' time.
Earlier in the day, the Ladbrokes Chester Cup Draw took place in the parade ring. Liverpool FC legend Ian Rush and Ladbrokes' Simon Clare took centre stage, pairing runners with their stalls ahead of Friday's showpiece race. The occasion was marked with a parade through Chester City Centre and onto the racecourse, officially opening the Boodles May Festival and the start of the racing season in style.
