led, headed approaching 5th, remained prominent, led again 5 out, headed 3 out, soon rallied, weakened flat
mid-division, headway 16th, chased leaders 6 out, hit 4 out, led next, mistake 2 out, hard ridden, stayed on strongly
chased leaders, reminders before 10th, outpaced 5 out, rallied after next, effort 2 out, kept on under pressure to go 2nd closing stages, no chance with winner
prominent, ridden 16th, weakened next
mid-division, pushed along 7th, soon lost place, weakened 13th, behind when pulled up 15th
held up in rear, reminders 5th, slow next struggling halfway, blundered 14th, steady headway from next, staying on when jumped left 2 out, never nearer
tracked leaders, outpaced 13th, rallied 5 out, weakened after next, modest 4th
in touch, lost place 11th, soon ridden, never dangerous
mid-division, slow 7th, soon lost place, under pressure 14th, weakened 16th
held up in rear, under pressure 13th, hampered 14th, soon behind, pulled up before 4 out
tracked leader, led before 5th, not fluent 15th, headed 5 out, weakened next
Not all are guaranteed to stay the trip in the forecast conditions, especially those shouldering plenty of weight towards the head of the handicap. One who'll not be troubled by either trip or ground is CHAC DU CADRAN, who still may have more to offer as a seven-year-old. He suffered his first-ever fall under Rules on his Carlisle reappearance but is normally a safe conveyance who showed his willingness for a war of attrition when landing the 3m6f North Yorkshire Grand National at Catterick last term on soft ground. Eleazar is well into the veteran stage now but he has been handled with shrewd intelligence by Lucy Wadham and it would not surprise to see him go well here on what admittedly rates his toughest test to date. Gorgehous Lliege may be 1lb out of the handicap but Venetia Williams is a dab hand in such races and he rates a place on the shortlist alongside Irish raider Mister Philson.
Ace High 14-1 (11-3) Tracked leaders, not fluent 12th or 15th, lost place when bumped and mistake 3 out,, 13th of 16, well behind Balthazar King (11-6) at Cheltenham 3m hcp chs (2) gd in Oct.
Nuts N Bolts 10-1 (10-11) Towards rear, weakened from 13th, tailed off 15th, pulled up before 17th, in a race won by Godsmejudge (11-3) at Ayr 4m hcp chs G3 (1) gd in Apr, 24 ran.
Red Rocco (IRE) 4-1 (10-0) Tracked leading pair who went clear after 4th, hit 12th, weakened after 5 out, left remote 3rd 4 out until 2 out, 4th of 12, 49l behind Carruthers (10-8) at Ffos Las 3m 4f hcp chs (2) hvy in Feb.
Lively Baron (IRE) 13-2 (11-7) Mostly in touch on outside until outpaced from 11th, weakened 3 out, 7th of 8, 29l behind Global Power (11-1) at Carlisle 3m 2f hcp chs 0-135 (3) hvy.
Chac Du Cadran (FR) 7-1 (11-12) Led, pecked 1st, joined 8th, fell 10th, in a race won by Papamoa (10-8) at Carlisle 3m hcp chs 0-125 (3) sft in Oct, 9 ran.
Our Island (IRE) 7-1 (11-7) Chased leaders, lost place before 7th, not fluent 8th, ridden after 12th, stayed on flat, no impression, 7th of 15, 7l behind Hunters Lodge (11-3) at Cheltenham 3m am hcp chs 0-125 (3) gd in Oct.
Incentivise (IRE) 8-1 (11-4) Held up mid-division, blundered 1st, ridden before 6 out, left poor 4th 4 out, no impression, 3rd of 9, 30l behind Papamoa (10-8) at Carlisle 3m hcp chs 0-125 (3) sft in Oct.
Dusky Bob (IRE) 9-2 (11-6) Towards rear, weakened from 7 out, pulled up 4 out, in a race won by Papamoa (10-8) at Carlisle 3m hcp chs 0-125 (3) sft in Oct, 9 ran.
Jaunty Journey 13-2 (10-11) Prominent, ridden after 13th, outpaced 4 out, weakened from 3 out, 5th of 8, 14l behind Global Power (11-1) at Carlisle 3m 2f hcp chs 0-135 (3) hvy.
Mister Philson (IRE) 11-10fav (10-11) Made all, ridden after last, stayed on, won at Hexham 3m 1f nov chs (4) gs in Apr beating On Broadway (11-0) by 1 1/4l, 5 ran.
Gorgehous Lliege (FR) 11-4fav (10-4) Led until 5th, chased winner until 14th, reached for 4 out, mistake next, went 2nd before last, stayed on flat, closing towards finish, 2nd of 7, 1 1/4l behind Fine Parchment (11-5) at Sandown 3m hcp chs 0-125 (3) sft.
Eleazar (GER) 16-1 (11-5) Tracked leaders in 3rd, led 4 out, clear 2 out, kept on well, won at Fontwell 3m 2f (4) gd in Oct beating Font (11-0) by 4l, 8 ran.
