Racing: Champion jockeys are witnesses for Bradley

It has been a disciplinary hearing in three parts, which seems appropriate considering the theatre which must have been going on backstage at the Jockey Club this week during the Graham Bradley case.

We will get to hear the detail today on judgement day and it must be meaty stuff judged by the dramatis personae at Portman Square. Wednesday's opening exchanges featured, for the defence, Desert Orchid's first rider, Colin Brown. Yesterday there were the celebrated figures of Peter Scudamore and Richard Dunwoody, champion jockeys both, also called on Bradley's behalf.

Bradley is being questioned over his self-confessed passing of privileged information and his relationship with Brian Wright, who is sought by police in relation to drugs offences. The Jockey Club also intend to quiz Bradley about his claims in his autobiography that on behalf of Wright he tried to persuade the starter to abandon the 1987 Cheltenham Gold Cup stating that snow, which had delayed the race for over an hour, had made the track unsafe. Scudamore and Dunwoody both took part in that race.

Other witnesses called on Bradley's behalf yesterday were the owner Tim Archer and, most exotically, the former Surrey and England spin bowler Pat Pocock. There was also an appearance from Jeremy Phipps, the ex-director of security at the Jockey Club who was forced to resign recently. He appeared for the prosecution.

It all seemed much simpler five years ago when Bradley's only problem seemed to be to how to hook Suny Bay's reins back over the grey's head after a dreadful mistake in the Hennessy Gold Cup. Well he won that one at least.

The ground on the chase course at Newbury is reported to be soft and good to soft in places, and conditions for tomorrow's renewal of the big race are not expected to be too testing. That would suit Lavinia Taylor's Gingembre, who was runner-up to King's Road in the millennium Hennessy before going on to collect the Scottish Grand National on a fast surface. "He finished second in the Hennessy when they'd had a deluge of rain, but he wouldn't want it sticky on Saturday," Andrew Thornton, the jockey, said yesterday.

Gingembre returned to action for the first time since his Ayr victory, after being out of action through injury, in Wetherby's Charlie Hall Chase and ran with credit to finish a two-length third to Marlborough after surviving a bad blunder at the second fence.

"It was an exciting race to ride in," Thornton added. "He made a terrible mistake at the second which put us totally out of the race and then it was a case of just a pop round to make sure he had a good introduction because it was his first run for about 18 months. He got within a couple of lengths of Marlborough which, after what happened at the second fence, was pretty miraculous.

"He worked on Tuesday and he was scoped afterwards. We were pleased with how things went. He's in real good form."

First Love failed to provide The Queen with a victory with her first runner over jumps for 50 years when beaten by Claymore at Uttoxeter yesterday. The Queen took over the ownership of First Love after the death of the Queen Mother in March. The Nicky Henderson-trained six-year-old was sent off as the 8-15 favourite, while Claymore, a 5-1 chance, was continuing the good run of his trainer, Oliver Sherwood, who saddled a treble at Ludlow on Monday.

HENNESSY GOLD CUP (Newbury, tomorrow): Coral: 7-1 Bounce Back, Harbour Pilot, 8-1 Hussard Collonges, 9-1 Stormez, 10-1 Frosty Canyon, Gola Cher, 12-1 Ad Hoc, Direct Access, Gingembre, Gunther McBride, Iznogoud, 14-1 Southern Star, Whitenzo, 16-1 Be My Royal, Carbury Cross, Marlborough, Takagi, Take Control. Ladbrokes: 7-1 Bounce Back, 9-1 Hussard Collonges, 10-1 Frosty Canyon, Gola Cher, Gunther McBride, Harbour Pilot, 11-1 Gingembre, 12-1 Ad Hoc, Iznogoud, Stormez, 14-1 Direct Access, Takagi, 16-1 Whitenzo. William Hill: 7-1 Bounce Back & Harbour Pilot, 9-1 Frosty Canyon, Hussard Collonges, 10-1 Ad Hoc, Gingembre, Gola Cher, Gunther McBride, 11-1 Stormez, 14-1 Direct Access, Iznogoud, Takagi, 16-1 Red Striker, 20-1 Carbury Cross, Marlborough, Southern Star.