Epatante (2-1) powered to victory in the Betway Aintree Hurdle on the opening day of the 2022 Randox Grand National Festival at Aintree Racecourse.
The Nicky Henderson-trained mare had no answer to Honeysuckle when second in the Unibet Champion Hurdle at last month's Cheltenham Festival. But stepped up in trip to 2m4f at Aintree she landed the Grade One fature in fine style.
The JP McManus-owned eight-year-old, who won the Champion Hurdle in 2019, had never run at the Grand National meeting before. But she always looked at home at Aintree as she cruised throughout the race under Aidan Coleman.
She was travelling well off the pace and then came through with 15-8 favourite Zanahiyr, who had been third in the Champion Hurdle, coming to the final flight. But as a potential battle of the big two was emerging Zanahiyr took a crashing fall to leave Epatante to saunter to a comfortable victory.
Zanahiyr and Jack Kennedy both got up unhurt from unscathed from the fall, which saw Guard Your Dreams badly hampered. His jockey Sam Twiston-Davies unshipped and missed out on the chance of being placed.
Epatante capped a sparkling season having dead-heated in the Fighting Fifth at Newcastle before winning the Christmas Hurdle. It was no disgrace to finish second to dual Champion Hurdle heroine Honeysuckle in the Champiom Hurdle heroine either.
Paul Nicholls' five-year-old Monmiral (8-1), who had won the 4-Y-O Juvenile Anniversary Hurdle on this day last year, came from the back to claim second, but she was 14 lengths adrift of the winner.
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Henderson said: "She's right back to her best. That's the first time she has ever been two and a half miles and the worry was would she get it? She's won all sorts of Group Ones over two miles and we asked her to go that bit further and she got it standing on her head!
"She's quickened very well and her jumping was electric. That's her secret weapon, well, it's not a secret weapon. It's an open weapon.
"She's just been back to herself, we didn't have to change an awful lot. This mare, she needs her confidence, and she's got it back as you can see."
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On plans for the futre, the Seven Barrows handler added: "Something like Constitution Hill might come into the equation. We'll see where they all go, we'll worry about that later!
"We've put her in at Punchestown. Who knows? She's on top of her form, isn't she? She deserves it, she's done nothing wrong all year.
"She ran a super race at Cheltenham. JP said at the beginning of the season 'Fighting Fifth, Christmas Hurdle, those are our golden aims'. We halved one and won the other and you'd settle for that, then we had a crack at the Champion and she was an honourable second. She's massively improved on last year.
McManus will be looking for a third Grand National victory on Saturday with chiefly last year's winner Minella Times, the Ted Walsh-trained Any Second Now and new recruit Enjoy D'allen. And he was delighted to be in the winner's enclosure again at Aintree. He said: "It's a great performance by Nicky to have her in the shape she was in after the Champion Hurdle, I'm very pleased.
"She hasn't had too many issues, she met one too good in the Champion Hurdle, it was great that he got her back and he was very happy with her preparation.
"She did it very well."
Winning jockey Coleman, who partners Grand National Snow Leopardess on Saturday, said: "You can just do whatever you want on her really, she had a lovely run through and she was travelling well when we got left alone at the last. It was a super performance and I'm delighted.
"She's won a Grade One left-handed at Newcastle, a Grade One right-handed at Kempton, a Champion Hurdle left-handed, whatever you want, she'll do. She's very good."
