tracked leaders, under pressure 4 out, soon weakened
held up towards rear when bad mistake 2nd, under pressure 8th, soon beaten, tailed off
held up in rear, headway approaching 3 out, soon driven to challenge, every chance when hit last, hard ridden and stayed on under pressure to lead last strides
settled in mid-division, under pressure 4 out, soon beaten
always prominent, led approaching 3 out, soon strongly challenged, headed next, rallied to lead again after last, headed and no extra close home
always in rear, weakened 4 out, tailed off
held up in touch, not fluent 6th, hard driven 4 out, soon chasing leaders, led 2 out, headed after last, no extra
mid-division, lost place approaching 4 out, soon behind
led until approaching 3 out, soon weakened
Nonrunner
Consistency may not be BLACK PHANTOM's strong point but there is no getting away from the fact that he ran right away from the opposition on similar ground at Exeter 11 days ago. Undoubtedly, a 17lb higher mark will make life tougher here but Andy Turnell's unexposed five-year-old is probably still worth sticking with. Palace Jester wasn't beaten far over this trip at Haydock in November and has been thereabouts over shorter since winning at Wetherby, while Frontier Spirit was in good form in the autumn though has been well beaten in his last couple of starts. Both Evan Williams and Rebecca Curtis saddle two runners but none of them have an obvious chance at the weights, though the latter's Scoter Fontaine is probably better than he's shown recently.
Comehomequietly (IRE) 6-1 (11-5) Held up in touch and keen, ridden after 4 out, weakened from next, left a poor 4th last, 4th of 8, 15l behind Mickmacmagoole (11-4) at Ffos Las 2m 4f hcp hdl 0-125 (3) gs.
Palace Jester 11-10fav (11-10) With leader on inside, led before 4 out, hard pressed 2 out, ridden and headed narrowly between last 2, every chance when not fluent last, kept on same pace flat, 3rd of 10, 1 3/4l behind Harry Hunt (10-4) at Bangor 2m 1f nh nov hdl (4) gs in Feb.
My Shamwari (IRE) 5-1 (11-5) Held up towards rear, mistake 1st, weakened after 3 out, 7th of 14, 27l behind Karky Schultz (11-1) at Taunton 2m 1f hcp hdl 0-135 (3) gs in Feb.
Frontier Spirit (IRE) 11-4 (11-5) Chased leading pair, went 2nd 3rd, led 5th until 7th, led again narrowly 3 out, headed before next, weakened soon after, 3rd of 6, 23l behind Prince Du Seuil (11-8) at Plumpton 2m 5f hcp hdl 0-125 (3) hvy in Feb.
Black Phantom (IRE) 12-1 (10-12) Chased leader, led approaching 4 out, left well clear 2 out, won at Exeter 2m 3f hcp hdl 0-115 (4) gs beating Pepporoni Pete (11-12) by 20l, 12 ran.
Gambo (IRE) 11-1 (10-9) Always in rear, last of 14, well behind Numide (11-2) at Ffos Las 2m 4f hcp hdl 0-130 (3) sft in Jan.
Scoter Fontaine (FR) 5-1 (11-4) Held up towards rear, some headway after 4 out, ridden in modest 6th before 3 out, went poor 4th close home, 4th of 10, 33l behind Bally Legend (11-4) at Ludlow 2m hcp hdl 0-125 (3) gs in Feb.
Mac Halen (IRE) 7-2fav (11-8) Always towards rear, ridden and struggling 4 out, tailed off, 9th of 10, well behind What A Scientist (10-12) at Newton Abbot 3m 3f hcp hdl 0-115 (4) gd in Aug.
Crannaghmore Boy (IRE) 20-1 (10-11) Chased leading pair, went 2nd 6th until 8th, weakened 3 out, tailed off, 8th of 12, well behind Time For Spring (11-12) at Sandown 2m 6f hcp hdl 0-120 (3) gd.
Caught By Witness (IRE) 9-2 (11-8) In touch, ridden 4 out, weakened soon after 2 out, 7th of 9, 27l behind Brunswick Gold (11-2) at Fakenham 2m 4f NH nov hdl (4-7yo) (3) gs in Feb.
Made In Time (IRE) 5-2fav (10-13) Towards rear, stayed on approaching 2 out, never going pace to get involved, 7th of 15, 20l behind Via Galilei (10-12) at Newbury 2m hcp hdl 0-135 (3) gs.
Puerto Azul (IRE) 8-1 (10-8) Held up in last pair, headway under pressure after 3 out, kept on same pace, 6th and no impression when pulled up quickly before last, in a race won by Pegasus Prince (10-9) at Market Rasen 2m 3f hcp hdl 0-135 (3) gs in Feb, 12 ran.
Yetholm (USA) 16-1 (11-1) In rear and jumped right throughout, headway on outer before 8th, soon lost place, never dangerous, last of 8, well behind Qianshan Leader (11-12) at Doncaster 2m 3f hcp chs 0-125 (3) gd.
