chased leading pair, went 2nd 4 out, pushed along and every chance 2 out, one pace into 3rd soon after, no chance with leading duo, dropped to 4th towards finish
raced wide, chased leaders, disputing 3rd 3 out until pushed along and oupaced before 2 out, kept on approaching last, rallied into 3rd towards finish, no chance with leading duo
held up in last trio, headway on outside after 3 out, chased leaders before next, led 2 out, ridden between last two, 2 lengths ahead when not fluent and went right last, hard ridden run-in, headed and no extra close home
chased leader, hit 4th and 7th, mistake and lost 2nd 4 out, weakened rapidly after next
held up in last trio, headway approaching 4 out, disputing 3rd next, 2nd soon after 2 out, 2 lengths down last, stayed on well under pressure run-in to lead close home
last trio, struggling in rear 4 out, tailed off and eased after next, pulled up before 2 out
held up in touch, pushed along and lost place after 7th, soon struggling, tailed off
led and set decent pace, ridden and headed 2 out, no extra in 4th under pressure between last two, outpaced into 5th run-in
Paul Nicholls won this last year and he'll be expecting Le Mercurey to improve on his first run for the yard at Newbury. Willem, another French import, could be interesting but, like recent Sandown winner Rayvin Black and One Lucky Lady, is carrying more than his allotted weight. Baradari is also out of the handicap and was well behind Garde La Victoire in a Grade 3 handicap at Cheltenham in November. Lyvius is probably a few pounds too high but did win on soft ground at Kempton a year ago so can't be ignored. ABRACADABRA SIVOLA looked on to follow when beating the smart Aurore D'Estruval at Haydock last season but then had an unhappy time of it over fences in France. However, he was more like his old self back over timber last time and could be tough to beat here if building on that.
Garde La Victoire (FR) 14-1 (11-12) Mid-division, headway under pressure before 2 out, 5th and beaten when blundered last, 5th of 18, 7l behind Bayan (11-5) at Ascot 2m hcp hdl Grade 3 (1) gs in Dec.
Le Mercurey (FR) 5-1 (11-10) Tracked leading trio, pushed along and outpaced before 2 out, driven and no impression between last two, lost poor 4th at the last, weakened flat, 7th of 8, 39l behind L'ami Serge (10-7) at Newbury 2m Lstd hcp hdl 0-155 (1) sft in Nov.
Lyvius 16-1 (11-8) In rear, headway before 3 out, chased leaders before 2 out, ridden before and hampered last, weakened run-in, 5th of 11, 9l behind On Tour (11-3) at Haydock 2m 4f hcp hdl (2) sft in Nov.
Abracadabra Sivola (FR) 16-1 (11-12) Midfield, headway under pressure 3 out, soon chasing leaders, weakened last, 3rd of 10, 27l behind Kilcooley (11-5) at Haydock 2m 4f hcp hdl (2) hvy in Dec.
Baradari (IRE) 12-1 (10-13) Prominent, not always fluent, challenged 4th, hit 4 out, lost place before 3 out, 13th of 15, 25l behind Garde La Victoire (11-9) at Cheltenham 2m hcp hdl Grade 3 (1) sft in Nov.
Willem (FR) (10-12) in a race won by Derwent (10-10) at Auteuil(FR) 2m 1f 4yo hdl gs in Jun, 13 ran.
One Lucky Lady 14-1 (10-6) Held up towards rear, ridden after 3 out, well beaten before next, 7th of 11, 17l behind Polly Peachum (11-12) at Wincanton 2m 6f mrs hcp hdl (2) gs in Nov.
Rayvin Black 9-1 (9-10) Made all and set good pace, clear from before 2 out, kept on well run-in, unchallenged, won at Sandown 2m hcp hdl 0-150 (2) sft beating Balgarry (11-0) by 3l, 11 ran.
