held up in 4th, lost place over 4f out, soon ridden and outpaced, weakened over 1f out
tracked leader, led 5f out, headed 2f out, soon ridden, stayed on under pressure final furlong, always held
tracked leading pair, went 2nd over 4f out, led 2f out, ridden and stayed on final furlong
held up in rear, headway on outside over 4f out, joined leading pair over 3f out, outpaced 2f out, soon ridden and no impression, lost 3rd inside final furlong
led, headed 5f out, soon lost place and behind, tailed off
held up behind, last and outpaced over 4f out, soon ridden, headway under pressure over 2f out, stayed on to chase leading pair inside final furlong, nearest finish
This has the makings of a fascinating contest but it's hard to be confident about picking the winner; we'll side with TRIP THE LIGHT ahead of Lang Shining, Sir George and General Eliott. Our selection is closely matched with General Eliott and Lang Shining at the weights but appeals as the horse most likely to give his running. Richard Fahey's charge finished mid-division at York last time having scored readily when last in this grade prior to that, his second victory of the season. Our concern is that 1m2f on quick ground is quite clearly on the sharp side but hopefully Tony Hamilton sets out to make this a stamina test. Lang Shining has claims on paper but hasn't won since 2008. However, Jamie Osborne has had a few winners of late and his charge showed a bit more behind Fremen last time. General Eliott should appreciate this drop in grade having contested some warm handicaps of late but again it's a long time since he won and the horse prefers softer conditions. Sir George has a bit to find at the weights but has a good draw, should stay the trip here and has recent winning form to call upon. Snoqualmie Boy is closely matched with our pick on 2009 form but has regressed since, Carcinetto is another flattered by her mark and Riqaab has a mountain to climb, so Trip The Light gets a marginal vote.
General Eliott (IRE) 33-1 (9-6) Always in rear, 11th of 13, 17l behind Distant Memories (9-13) at York 1m 1f hcp 105 (2) gd.
Trip The Light 9-1 (9-13) Settled in mid-division, some headway over 2f out, never on terms, 6th of 18, 16l behind Desert Recluse (8-3) at York 1m 4f ladys hcp 0-95 (3) gd.
Lang Shining (IRE) 3-1 (9-3) Held up in rear, effort on outside over 2f out, ridden over 1f out, stayed on same pace under pressure, no impression, 5th of 6, 4l behind Fremen (9-8) at Musselburgh 1m 1f sell stks (4) gf.
Snoqualmie Boy 25-1 (9-13) Held up in rear, never dangerous, 8th of 10, 33l behind Arizona John (9-4) at Pontefract 1m 2f hcp 0-90 (3) gf.
Riqaab (IRE) 50-1 (8-9) Held up towards rear, pushed along over 3f out, weakened over 2f out, 10th of 11, 50l behind Ezdeyaad (10-0) at Haydock 1m hcp 0-90 (3) gf.
Carcinetto (IRE) 22-1 (9-7) Prominent, ridden over 2f out, soon beaten, weakened final furlong, last of 9, 11l behind Gobama (8-0) at Thirsk 1m flls hcp 0-130 (3) gd.
Sir George (IRE) 8-1 (9-1) Held up behind, headway and raced center over 2f out, ridden over 1f out, kept on inside final furlong, 4th of 16, 3l behind Camerooney (8-9) at Carlisle 1m hcp 0-80 (4) gf.
