held up in touch, ridden well over 1f out, beaten and no impression when not much room well inside final furlong
took keen hold, held up, ridden and headway 1f out, beaten when eased close home
in touch, pushed along over 3f out, switched left 1f out, soon edged left, stayed on
chased leader, every chance over 1f out, not quicken well inside final furlong
led, ridden and headed well over 1f out, rallied inside final furlong, kept on
held up, ridden when slightly hampered 1f out, stayed on towards finish, never nearer
slowly into stride, raced keenly, held up, headway over 2f out, ridden and beaten over 1f out
pulled hard, always prominent, led well over 1f out, edged left inside final furlong, ridden out
Thorny Mandate is only a token selection in the finale with Urban Warrior and Atomic Winner the suitable alternatives. The selection looks completely exposed these days but he won well in a recent amateur riders' race and having not been too far away in two previous starts in May, a cogent argument can be made for him being in good heart. Urban Warrior is selected by Seb Sanders over Callisto Moon. Some may find this surprising given Callisto Moon's improvement as a juvenile hurdler. The trip and going probably made Sanders mind up for him. Atomic Winner won back-to-back races at Huntingdon and Ludlow over hurdles. She had won twice for previous connections on the level so cannot be dismissed. Wyeth is still a maiden. He does not look the bravest on balance and due to his high profile connections, he looks sure to be overbet again. Is It Me was once thought of as a Triumph Hurdle certainty by many but has cruelly lost the plot. Transvestite needs softer while Moonshine Creek is way out of the handicap. A race that will take little to win it and Thorny Mandate is our selection to minimum stakes.
Transvestite (IRE) 22-1 (8-8) Led until headed narrowly over 2f out, kept on until weakened final furlong, 7th of 11, 8l behind Paktolos (9-2) at Salisbury 1m 4f hcp 0-85 (4) gf in Jun.
Atomic Winner (IRE) 16-1 (10-0) Held up mid-division, ridden over 2f out, no headway and one pace final 2f, 8th of 13, 4 1/2l behind Casilda (9-4) at Salisbury 1m 2f fll hcp (4) gf in Jun.
Callisto Moon 6-1 (8-13) Towards rear, headway to go in touch over 6f out, ridden 3 out, weakened over 1f out, 6th of 10, 5l behind Pret A Porter (9-1) at Warwick 1m 5f 3yo hcp (5) gf in May '07.
Urban Warrior 25-1 (8-4) Prominent, chased leader 3f out, effort 2f out, switched left over 1f out, not quicken and weakened final furlong, 6th of 11, 8l behind Paktolos (9-2) at Salisbury 1m 4f hcp 0-85 (4) gf in Jun.
Is It Me (USA) 9-1 (9-0) Led, driven and headed over 2f out, weakened over 1f out, 5th of 9, 6l behind Bassinet (9-1) at Newmarket 1m 4f hcp 0-75 (5) gf in Jun.
Wyeth 6-1 (8-12) Held up behind, ridden over 3f out, some late progress, never dangerous, 7th of 12, 5l behind Double Spectre (8-13) at Salisbury 1m 4f hcp 0-70 (5) gf in Jun.
Thorny Mandate 7-1 (9-7) Steadied start, held up in rear, headway over 1f out, switched left inside final furlong, ran on well to lead post, won at Chester 1m 4f ldy rds hcp (5) gf in Jun beating Gamesters Lady (9-11) by a ns, 13 ran.
Moonshine Creek 11-2fav (8-5) Started slowly, tracked leader after 2 furlongs, led over 3f out, hard pressed 1f out, no extra when headed well inside final furlong, 2nd of 14, 1/2l behind Camera Shy (8-8) at Lingfield 1m 4f hcap (6) pol in Jun.
