Fallon fails to fire

A first British winner in more than three years eluded Kieren Fallon on his return to the saddle, with his seven rides at Lingfield and Kempton all failing to yield success.

The six-time champion Flat jockey headed to the track for the first time in the UK since finishing unplaced at Newbury on June 27 2006, and the closest he came to the winner's enclosure was two second-place finishes.

Fallon has been absent for the last couple of years because of a combination of the Old Bailey trial into alleged race-fixing, which ended in the judge ruling there was no case to answer, and an 18-month drugs suspension imposed by the French authorities.

His presence ensured a bumper 1,350 crowd at Lingfield, and he emerged fourth-last from the weighing room at 2.10pm to a ripple of warm applause for his mount aboard Rare Malt in the Withyham Median Auction Maiden Stakes.

Amy Weaver's juvenile carried plenty of support as the 13-8 joint favourite but failed to provide the dream comeback, relegated into second by Mr Mahoganeigh.

After his second-place finish at Lingfield, Fallon's results got worse through the afternoon - Roodee King finishing fourth, Diriculous taking fifth and Satwa Gold beating just one home.

Having tanked around the M25, he arrived at Kempton for three rides and had a brief brush with the stewards after occupying third place aboard Wigan Lane in division two of the Celtic Contractors Nursery Handicap.

He was cautioned for careless riding for allowing his mount to hang into the whip, and later bemoaned a lost opportunity.

He said: "I should have really won the race, but the gap closed on me. I'm sure with my first winner everything will fall into place."

That win proved elusive later in the evening with Arte Viva beaten by a length and Sir Michael Stoute's Bugaku just fourth on Fallon's final ride of the day.