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The Gordon Elliott-trained Found A Fifty lunged late to land a thrilling Grade 1 Maghull Novices' Chase at Aintree on Saturday.

Second in the Arkle Trophy at the Cheltenham Festival, Found A Fifty's form was given a timely boost when stablemate Il Etait Temps won the Grade 1 Manifesto Novices' Chase on Thursday of the Aintree Festival. Already a Grade 1 winner over two miles, the Gordon Elliott -trained novice chaser started favourite for the two mile contest as the rain began to hit the Merseyside racecourse.

There was early drama in the race with the Nigel Twiston-Davies-trained Matata ducking sharply right at the start, hampering multiple rivals. Quilixios set a strong early pace under Rachael Blackmore and the rest of the field were happy to sit behind, with eventual winner Found A Fifty always travelling strongly for jockey Jack Kennedy. Found A Fifty jumped easily into contention by the second-last fence and pulled clear with Nigel Twiston Davies' Master Chewy in the closing stages, benefiting from a good jump at the last. The pair had a stride-for-stride battle all the way up the run-in, with Found A Fifty gamely rallying to secure a head success. Libberty Hunter out-ran market expectations to finish third for trainer Evan Williams.

Elliott said: "We've had a great season, we've been hitting the crossbar all week and what's not winning is running very well.

"I'm thrilled to see this horse win and I'm delighted for Noel and Valerie (Moran, owners). It's a huge day and he was tough. He's a good horse."

Another Grade 1 success makes Found A Fifty one of the best two mile novice chasers in the UK and Ireland, and Paddy Power cut his odds from next year's Champion Chase accordingly – 66/1 to 33/1.