held up mid-division, pushed along after 4 out, soon ridden, headway on outer approaching 3 out, ridden approaching last, kept on towards finish
tracked leaders, weakened approaching 3 out
tracked leader, weakened after 4 out, tailed off
made all, ridden approaching last, kept on well
held up towards rear, pushed along and not fluent 6th, some headway from 3 out, no impression
held up towards rear, headway after 4 out, ridden approaching last, kept on same pace
held up towards rear and keen, chased leaders approaching 3 out, weakened approaching 2 out
in rear, headway after 4 out to chase leaders, weakened after 2 out
held up mid-division, weakened approaching 3 out
held up towards rear, headway approaching 6th, chased leaders 4 out, kept on from last
tracked leaders, blundered 4 out, soon weakened tailed off when pulled up before 3 out
The two former course and distance winners in the field for the concluding handicap hurdle, Micky Hammond's Terenzium and Mick Easterby's Lady Wright, have claims on the pick of their form but they have not shown that for some time and a safer option looks to be recent Kelso winner BENMADIGAN. The eight-year-old has never been the most reliable horse trained by Nicky Richards but he won well at Kelso last week in a conditional jockeys' handicap when beating Smarties Party and he can race off the same mark today so looks to have an obvious chance of following up. Gary Moore's Forget It has paid the penalty at the hands of the handicapper for his win at Fontwell two starts ago and now looks best watched, while Mini Minster also looks a shade high in the weights. Dai Burchell's Ring For Time has shown reasonable form in novice hurdles but was disappointing on his handicap debut at Worcester recently and a better bet looks to be Benmadigan, who can win again.
Ring For Time 9-1 (11-0) Mid-divsion, lost place 5th, no impression after, 6th of 10, 13l behind Pascha Bere (11-12) at Worcester 2m hcp hdl 0-125 (3) gd.
Forget It 16-1 (11-0) Held up towards rear, fell 5th, in a race won by Astracad (10-7) at Aintree 2m 4f hcp hdl 0-125 (3) gd, 18 ran.
Terenzium (IRE) 25-1 (10-9) In rear, pushed along approaching 7th, weakened 3 out, 7th of 10, well behind Quartz De Thaix (11-13) at Perth 2m 4f hcp hdl 0-140 (2) gd in Apr.
Option Money (IRE) 40-1 (10-10) Mid-division, took keen hold, not fluent 2nd, pushed along before 5th, struggling next, behind when hampered and unseated rider 3 out, in a race won by Alazan (11-5) at Bangor 2m 1f hcp hdl 0-120 (3) gd, 11 ran.
Mini Minster 17-2 (11-1) Held up in touch on outer, headway after 2 out, kept on from last, just held for 3rd, 4th of 11, 5l behind Flower Haven (10-12) at Aintree 2m 4f mrs hcp hdl 0-115 (4) gd.
Azulada Bay (IRE) 5-2fav (11-0) Prominent, ridden in 4th before 3 out, soon weakened, 5th of 12, 24l behind Haldibari (10-6) at Worcester 3m hcp hdl 0-110 (4) gd.
Benmadigan (IRE) 5-1 (10-9) Held up towards rear and keen, headway to chase leaders 3 out, challenged next, led 1f out, kept on, won at Kelso 2m 2f cond hcp hdl 0-1115 (4) gf beating Smarties Party (10-9) by 2 3/4l, 8 ran.
Lady Wright (IRE) 5-1 (11-9) Behind, pushed along 3 out, soon beaten, 10th of 11, 17l behind Extreme Conviction (11-9) at Bangor 2m 4f hcp hdl 0-100 (4) gd in Apr.
Kayf Commander 5-1 (10-10) Led until not fluent 4th, led next, went right 3 out, headed next, soon driven, no impression last, lost 2nd towards finish, 3rd of 5, 10l behind Tharaya (10-9) at Wetherby 2m hcp hdl 0-115 (4) gd.
Tyrrhenian 33-1 (11-0) Mid-division, mistake 7th, lost place next, tailed off, 15th of 16, well behind Liz's Dream (10-9) at Perth 3m 4yo Am hcp 0-100 (4) gd in Apr.
Miss Tarantella 13-2 (10-9) Prominent, took keen hold, saddle soon slipped, with leader when pulled up before 2nd, in a race won by Flying Doctor (11-5) at Wetherby 3m 1f hcp hld 0-95 (5) gd, 14 ran.
Still Royal 200-1 (10-8) Behind, headway approaching 2 out, never on terms, 9th of 12, 35l behind Clerk's Choice (10-12) at Huntingdon 2m nh nov hdl (4) gs.
