Martin Pipe gained another significant success to stretch his lead in then UK trainers' championship when Seebald landed the Faucetts For Mira Showers Silver Trophy at Cheltenham today.
Since his triumph with Tiutchev at Aintree, Pipe has gradually turned the screw on his big rival Paul Nicholls and this half-length success for Seebald over Tikram will be seen as a major step towards a 14th title for the reigning champion.
Tony McCoy had to survive one bad jump on the 13-2 winner, who was never going to be denied up the hill even though Tikram made him fight for the first prize of £29,000.
Afterwards Pipe enthused: "At last we've got him in front. He did make that one mistake just when he was coming into the race, but ultimately the extensive schooling we've done with him since he ran at Aintree has paid off."
Pipe, who will run at least three in Saturday's Scottish Grand National, including last year's runner-up Stormez, was told by one wag that the title is more or less sewn up.
But he retorted: "Nothing is in the bag yet. There is still a lot of racing to go and one big-race success such as the Betfred (Gold Cup, formerly the Whitbread) can swing things completely around."
Pipe and McCoy went on to complete a 66.5-1 treble when odds-on chance Celestial Gold landed the April Novices' Chase by a length and a quarter from L'Aventure, and Lough Derg finished strongly to take the concluding Concord Quality Filing Products Juvenile Novices' Hurdle.
PA