Arc-winning jockey Luke Morris showcased his talents with a sensational five-timer at Lingfield on Wednesday afternoon.
Morris’ first winner came in 2005, and 21 years later he rode his first quintet of winners on a card.
The first of the day came in the 1.12pm with Rosieisme Darling, whom Morris won on in December. The Land Force mare was always doing enough under the ‘Sniper’ to win by a neck.
Morris followed that up in the 2.12pm, when again winning a short distance on Archie Watson’s Numero Vingt. The Mehmas gelding followed up his Chelmsford success under a penalty, beating Ed Walker’s Moonshine. It was a similar performance his first win, staying on strongly in between runners to lead close to home.
The hat-trick was quickly notched up in the 2.42pm on the Michael Attwater trained Desdemona. Morris broke sharply from the outside stall to be well-positioned to the fore early on. He angled out wide and came with a late run to run out a facile two length winner.
Morris couldn’t quite provide the four-timer when third on Tam Lin in the 3.12pm, but swiftly regained the winning thread in the 3.42pm on Mount Morgan. The nine-year-old Helmet gelding pulled a length clear of the second, recording his first win since last March.
Luke Morris wasn’t done there, as he once again judged the fractions with aplomb on John Gallagher’s First Encounter.
“I just couldn’t believe he kept going” – Morris
Speaking to Sky Sports Racing, via Sporting Life, Morris was surprised about his fifth winner’s attitude.
“I was just trying to get him to back off a bit. Even coming into the straight I was trying to save fuel for as long as I can.
“Fair play to the horse, he was brave because he was on fumes at the end.”
Morris couldn’t quite notch up the six-timer on Profit Street, beaten half-a-length into second. With form figures of 111312 on the day though, it was certainly a memorable afternoon for Luke Morris.
After the fifth winner, Morris joked “it’s taken long enough, 20 years!”
Though a memorable afternoon, it won’t have topped his Prix de l’Arc Triomphe success on Alpinista for Sir Mark Prescott in 2022. The Frankel mare formed an illustrious partnership with Luke Morris, with the pair winning a sextet of Group 1s culminating in one of Europe’s most prestigious races.