led, ridden and joined 2f out, headed 1 1/2f out, under pressure when bumped slightly over 1f out, no extra in 3rd final furlong
always last, reminder in last on outer 2f out and veered left, not recover and kept on one paced under hands and heels thereafter
chased leader in 2nd early, 3rd after 3f, pushed along in close 3rd 2f out, went 2nd over 1f out, strongly pressed winner inside final furlong, no extra close home
chased leaders in 3rd early, went 2nd after 3f, headway to dispute lead travelling well 2f out, ridden to lead 1 1/2f out, strongly pressed inside final furlong, stayed on well close home
Aidan O'Brien had half of the original 16 entries and that remains the case as the field is reduced drastically. PIETRO TESTA, who cost a whopping £2.6m and is a half-brother to Harbinger, made a reasonable start at Leopardstown in October and will be expected to start repaying some of that layout soon. Not surprisingly he's a Derby entry as is his stable companion Three Star General, a 675,000gns yearling by Montjeu, whose progeny generally go well in soft ground. Warp Factor made his debut over 7f at Cork last month and stayed on nicely at the finish. He's bred to stay this trip so it would be no shock if he were to upset the Ballydoyle pair. Topaz Clear is a half-sister to Forgotten Rules and two other middle-distance winners so she's definitely not making up the numbers.
Pietro Testa (IRE) 8-1 (9-5) Tracked leaders, 3rd halfway, pushed along approaching straight and no impression in 4th 1f out, no extra, 5th of 15, 5l behind Awtaad (9-5) at Leopardstown 7f mdn gd in Oct.
Three Star General Montjeu colt out of Honorlina.
Warp Factor (IRE) 16-1 (9-5) Slowly into stride, pushed along in 7th halfway, ridden over 2f out and went 3rd 1f out, kept on inside final furlong to go 2nd final 50 yards, 2nd of 10, 5 1/2l behind Clear Cut (9-5) at Cork 7f mdn hvy in Mar.
Topaz Clear (IRE) Pivotal filly out of Utterly Heaven.
