HISTORY was made at Wetherby last Sunday as they staged their first ever flat race meeting, and it proved highly successful.

The first race produced a cracking finish with In Focus, trained by Alan Swinbank and ridden by David Allan, edging out Rousayan by a nose.

Afterwards the delighted winning handler said: "He had a good draw (four) so he was able to let two or three give him a lead.

"It didn't surprise me as he's been working well with some nice horses."

Paul Mulrennan celebrated the first Flat meeting at Wetherby with a double on Mount Tahan and Corona Borealis.

Mulrennan cycled the ten miles from his home to the West Yorkshire venue in a sweatsuit and then walked the track before racing in order to shift a crucial pound or two in weight.

His hard work was rewarded as he first drove Mount Tahan (3/1) to an all-the-way win in the maiden.

The Kevin Ryan-trained gelding confirmed the promise of two runs as a juvenile with an emphatic four-and-a-half-length rout over Fly With Emirates.

Mulrennan said: "He was green and backward last year, but the penny has really dropped with him.

"The further he went there, the better he went. He's a nice horse and hopefully there will be more to come."

Mulrennan's brace came on Corona Borealis, formerly trained in Ireland by Johnny Murtagh, who lost his maiden tag on his British debut with a hard-fought success in the bet365 Handicap.

The Michael Dods-trained four-year-old collared the pace-setting Be Perfect in the final furlong to get the verdict by half a length.

"We got him in February and I said to Andrew (Tinkler, owner) this morning that if he's going to be any good, he needs to get this trip and further," said Dods.

"They've been running him over shorter and he hasn't got any gears. The plan was to sit handy but he stood still and missed the break."

There was also a Middleham winner on the card as Ben Haslam's Lady Lekki, bred by jockey Kieren Fallon, showed a neat turn of foot when making a winning debut in the Maiden Auction Stakes under Andrew Elliott.

"She's shown a bit of quality, but it probably wasn't a great maiden," said Haslam.

"She had little issues as a two-year-old, but was on the go and she's done that well."

Fallon got on the score sheet in the saddle as well when he struck on Snappy Guest in the one mile handicap.

He brought the George Margarson-trained gelding to get the better of Hidden Rebel by two and a quarter lengths.

It' Classic weekend at Newmarket and Hugo Palmer looks for his biggest win in his short career as a trainer with Home Of The Brave in tomorrow's 2000 Guineas.

The Newmarket handler said: "I believe he will stay a mile. There's a big difference between staying a mile and being good enough to win a Guineas, but he was certainly not stopping at the end of his trial.

"James Doyle may ride if Maftool doesn't run, but Pat Smullen has agreed to be the super sub. I'm in a privileged position to have a choice of two of the world's best jockeys."

Even if Home Of The Brave triumphs at Headquarters, Palmer is not convinced he will necessarily stay at a mile, with the new Group One Commonwealth Cup over six furlongs at Royal Ascot already on the radar as a possible option.

The trainer said: "If he went on to win the Guineas, it would not be definitive that he stays at a mile as we may drop him back for the Commonwealth Cup at Ascot.

"The mile track there in the St James's Palace Stakes is a very different test for a horse compared to the Newmarket track. Lots of Guineas horses get beaten in the St James's Palace.

"It's a very stiff mile and you have to travel to the bend and kick off it.

"My guess is that the sprint trip might be more suitable for him."