Ian Popham, a 7lb claiming jockey, rode a fine double at Newton Abbot races on Monday, the first day of a two day meeting, writes Nick Hearder.

Conditions overhead were grey but the going underfoot was fine for racing and Popham will have only sunny memories of his rides on Gracechurch and Predateur.

Gracechurch, who is trained at Somerton, Somerset, by Ron Hodges, had not run over jumps for a year but had a run recently on the flat and was favoured by the conditions of the Clive Ralph Claiming Hurdle.

There was good support for the winner who eventually started at 7-1 and beat the favourite Stumped by one-and-a-half lengths.

Popham only had to wait half an hour for his second success.

Predateur is also trained in Somerset, being an inmate of Paul Nicholls' yard at Ditcheat.

Wake Board, making his chasing debut, was all the rage for the Happy Birthday David Atkinson Novices' Chase. He is a keen sort and raced into a clear lead, but was a spent force when Predateur and Popham went past him at the tenth.

Predateur, who had given Popham a nasty moment when blundering at the sixth, powered ahead to win easily from toiling rivals. The winner's 7-1 starting price will have pleased and surprised some since Nicholls' yard has a fine record in novice chases at Newton Abbot.

The reason for the price was partly that Predateur, though usually placed, has found winning hard in the past and had become something of a disappointment.

The Emma Novices' Handicap Hurdle, the feature race on the card with more than £6,000 to the winner, attracted only six starters but looked a difficult race to solve on paper.

Maria Antonia, who was Tony McCoy's only ride of the afternoon, started favourite but had to settle for second behind 3-1 shot Sweet World, who provided another success for amateur rider Isobel Tompsett, who has already enjoyed success at Newton this summer with Olivino, among others.

Sweet World was in last place early on as Urban Tiger took the field along but made smooth headway and led two out.

Tompsett, whose day job is as a vet, rode Sweet World clear for a pretty comfortable victory. The winner is owned and trained by Bernard Llewellyn at Bargoed in South Wales.

Wales scored again when Berkeley Court won the closing handicap chase hard held.

Dean Coleman rode the victor, who is handled by Bridgend trainer Tim Vaughan. This was consolation for the odds-on eclipse of the same stable's Wake Board.

The 9-1 chance Crazy Eyes, who is owned by Brian Walsh from County Kildare, took the Liz Clark Handicap Hurdle by a length-a-half. He is trained in Upper Lambourn by Charlie Mann.

There was a Devon winner in the opening Hope Cove Novices' Hurdle. David Pipe, who trains at Nicholashayne, is back in terrific form and sent Corum out to win.

It was at the first time of asking for the stable since the six-year-old was bought after winning a seller fewer than three weeks ago.