disputed early, slight mistake 1st and chased leader, led 4 out, slight mistake next, ridden and joined before last, headed approaching last and soon no extra
held up towards rear, slight mistake 4 out, ridden and no extra before next
held up, 5th halfway, ridden and no impression 3 out, soon no extra
settled behind leaders, slight mistake 2nd, 3rd halfway, slightly hampered 2 out, travelled well to press leaders entering straight, ridden to dispute before last, narrow lead last, kept on well closing stages
held up towards rear, mistake 2nd, no impression before 3 out, ridden and no extra before 2 out
disputed early, led 1st, slight mistake 4 out and headed, edged slightly right 2 out, soon ridden in 2nd, disputed before last, narrowly headed last, kept on same pace run-in
settled behind leaders, 4th halfway, no impression before 3 out, soon ridden and kept on one pace
Bapaume, a regular in top handicaps over fences, had been racing over hurdles before an easy victory in a conditions' chase at Tramore. A seven-times winner, he'll take some beating but conceding 6lb to SNOW FALCON (NAP) won't be easy. Twelve-times a winner from 50 starts, the veteran showed he retains his ability with a very good placed effort at Killarney, his first start over timber since 2017 though he's won on the Flat in that time. Bleu Berry won the Coral Cup at Cheltenham in 2018 but has been very lightly raced subsequently while Festival D'ex, who started out winning a big-field bumper here before landing a Navan maiden hurdle, finished last on the latter course in March last year and hasn't been seen subsequently.
Bapaume (FR) 11-8fav (11-8) Tracked leader in 2nd, led 5 out, went clear travelling well 2 out, stayed on strongly run-in, eased close home, easily, won at Tramore 2m 6f gd in Apr beating Us And Them (11-8) by 8 1/2l, 5 ran.
Festival D'ex (FR) 11-4fav (11-3) Waited with, 6th after 6th, some headway straight, no impression 2 out, last of 8, 25 1/4l behind Francin (11-4) at Navan 2m 6f hvy in Mar.
Lethal Steps 50-1 (10-9) In touch in mid-division, mistake 3rd, headway after 3 out, weakened before last, 13th of 24, 15 1/2l behind Saint Roi (10-13) at Cheltenham 2m 1f hcp (1) sft in Mar.
Bleu Berry (FR) 66-1 (11-6) Soon mid-division, some headway and kept on same pace from before straight, 12th of 24, 12 3/4l behind Koshari (11-9) at Punchestown 2m 4f hcp Good - Yielding in May.
Robin Des Foret (IRE) 12-1 (11-4) Rear of mid-division, dropped to 7th after 7th, progress before 4 out, not fluent in 5th 3 out, weakened after 2 out, 5th of 7, 23 3/4l behind Samcro (12-0) at Killarney 2m 4f (1) Good - Yielding in May.
Snow Falcon (IRE) 9-1 (11-2) Soon mid-division, 5th before 3rd, 6th after 7th, headway after 4 out, progress to 3rd before 2 out, no impression on leader, ridden and kept on without threatening run-in, 3rd of 8, 6l behind Darasso (11-2) at Killarney 2m 4f Good - Yielding in May.
Wrong Direction (IRE) 10-3fav (11-8) Led and disputed, ridden and disputed lead entering straight, headed narrowly and hampered 2 out, no impression on winner approaching last, kept on one pace run-in, 2nd of 12, 19l behind Ah Littleluck (11-10) at Wexford 3m 1f hcp sft in May.
Largy Trix (IRE) 18-1 (11-4) Held up in rear, headway when hampered 3 out, went 2nd last, challenged flat, led towards finish, won at Perth 2m mdn (4) sft in May beating Bright Eyed Eagle (10-12) by 3/4l, 9 ran.
