mid-division, ridden over 2f out, no headway
tracked leader, effort 2f out, slightly outpaced over 1f out, kept on inside final furlong
raced wide behind, ridden 3f out, no impression until stayed on final furlong, not troubled leaders
behind, headway 2f out, kept on, not troubled leaders
prominent until ridden and weakened over 2f out
chased leaders, every chance over 1f out, no extra final furlong
slowly into stride, soon mid-division, ridden over 2f out, no impression and weakened quickly over 1f out
in rear group, never a factor
prominent, lost position 3f out, headway 2f out, every chance entering final furlong, not pace of winner
behind, ridden 3f out, soon beaten
behind, ridden over 2f out, stayed on final furlong, never nearer
in touch, headway on outside over 1f out, led inside final furlong, driven clear
A chance is taken here with the once raced Lady Stardust, with Kingsholm and Top Mark two obvious dangers. It is always hard to assess a horse after just one run., Lady Stardust did win nicely on her Newbury debut last August. She beat a 74 rated rival with the minumum of fuss and so today's handicap mark does look just about right. She is open to improvement and could turn out to be listed class in the future. Kingsholm didn't take to hurdling over the winter but put in some excellent efforts on the flat last season. If his confidence hasn't been dented he should go close this afternoon. The pick on this season's form is Top Mark, who doesn't know how to run a bad race. The handicapper may just have in his grip at present but he should still be vying for some place money. Direct Debit should improve for a recent return and could be the best of the others, however our idea of the winner is Lady Stardust.
Top Mark 4-1 (8-9) Always prominent, ridden to lead over 1f out, headed and not quicken well inside final furlong, 2nd of 8, 1/2l behind Wild Pitch (8-13) at W'hampton 1m 1f app hcp (4) pol in Feb.
