held up towards rear, never troubled leaders
chased leaders, ridden and weakened 2f out
held up, ridden 3f out, weakened 2f out
raced keen chasing leaders, ridden approaching final furlong, stayed on, no chance with winner
jumped right start, raced alone centre, with leader, switched left 3f out, led over 2f out, ridden out
held up, ridden over 2f out, stayed on, never nearer
led, ridden and headed over 2f out, weakened final furlong
hampered start, held up, never a factor
slowly into stride, held up towards rear, ridden and headway over 1f out, stayed on, never dangerous
A difficult race to assess, which includes a number of well-bred newcomers from powerful yards, so a tentative vote goes to Sir Michael Stoute's Vipassana ahead of stablemate Precious Days while Lodger and Putra Kuantan are others to note. The selection made little impact on her sole start over seven furlongs as a juvenile but this daughter of Sadler's Wells, who is related to a number of smart middle distance performers, is bred to shine as a three-year-old and can leave the form behind now she tackles a trip more in keeping with her pedigree. Precious Days is a beautifully bred daughter of Deputy Minister out of a Diesis mare who was successful at Listed level before finishing runner-up in the 1996 Oaks but looks the stable second string on jockey bookings. Jeremy Noseda's yard has made a slow start to the turf campaign after suffering an outbreak of equine flu but Lodger shaped with ability when third on his seasonal return at Newmarket's Craven meeting and will prove no pushover. Putra Kuantan is held in high regard by his astute handler and a market move for the son of Grand Lodge could well prove significant.
