held up, headway on inside 4th, led approaching 3 out, drew well clear from 2 out
chased leader until approaching 3rd, remained prominent, weakened after 7th, tailed off when pulled up before last
raced wide, held up towards rear, headway 2nd, soon lost place again, ridden when jumped slowly 7th, soon struggling, behind when jumped right 2 out
chased leaders, ridden and every chance approaching 3 out, soon hung right, weakened approaching 2 out
held up, headway before 6th, went 2nd approaching 2 out, no chance with winner
chased leaders, went 2nd before 3rd, led 5th until approaching 3 out, weakened for 2 out
led to 5th, weakened approaching 3 out
held up on outside, not fluent 3rd, headway after 7th, weakened 2 out, blundered last
prominent, jumped right 2nd, ridden and lost place before 4th, behind when mistake 6th
soon ridden along, headway 3rd, behind when jumped slowly 6th, tailed off when pulled up before 3 out
This looks quite tight to call, but the progressive Im Spartacus can make the most of the bit of weight that he receives from Sole Agent, You Do The Math and Burntoakboy. Im Spartacus has been a familiar sight on the Flat in the past, and was good enough to land a Group 3 for David Flood at The Curragh in 2005. Unfortunately, since moving across the Irish Sea, he has been hard to place on the level, so it was nice to see that he still retains some enthusiasm judged on his stylish winning performance on what was his debut over timber at Southwell in December. If Evan Williams can keep him sweet, who knows, the Welsh handler may have a Cheltenham horse on his hands. First though the five-year-old has to pass today's test as he ventures into handicap company over hurdles for the first time, and in receipt of weight from his main rivals, he gets the nod. Burntoakboy has topweight to overcome and has yet to win on these shores but has the odd placed effort to his name, while Sole Agent has gone back up in the weights and may start to struggle again. You Do The Math found nothing when let down at Hereford last time but normally shapes as though he can stay, so it is hard to rule him out completely, and with Smart Boy Prince having an absence to overcome, we return to Im Spartacus as the winner.
Burntoakboy 10-1 (10-9) Held up in rear, headway 8th, chased winner approaching last, not quicken flat, 2nd of 7, 1l behind Haggle Twins (11-0) at Southwell 2m 4f hcp hdl 0-135 (3) sft.
Smart Boy Prince (IRE) 9-2 (11-5) Led and jumped wide, clear 3rd until ridden and hit 3 out, headed and no extra flat, 2nd of 6, 4l behind Potts of Magic (10-2) at Uttoxeter 3m hcp hdl 0-115 (4) gf in Jul.
Hawk's Landing (IRE) 7-1 (11-11) Mid-division until weakened 7th, 14th of 15, well behind Franco (10-12) at Market Rasen 2m 3f hcp hdl 0-115 (4) sft in Dec.
Sole Agent (IRE) 4-1 (11-11) Tracked leaders, hit 4 out, driven along after next, every chance when mistake last, no extra flat, 3rd of 7, 3l behind Brendar (10-11) at Plumpton 2m 5f hcp hdl 0-115 (4) sft.
You Do The Math (IRE) 9-4 (11-5) In touch, chased winner from 6th until weakened straight, 4th of 17, 15l behind Schuh Shine (11-2) at Hereford 2m 4f hcp hdl 0-115 (4) hvy.
John Forbes 4-1 (10-6) Led, ridden and headed when hit 2 out, soon outpaced, 4th of 7, 7l behind Smoothly Does It (9-12) at Wetherby 2m hcp hdl 0-130 (3) hvy.
Marsh Run 10-1 (11-8) Prominent, weakened after 4 out, last of 8, well behind Smoothly Does It (10-0) at Wetherby 2m hcp hdl 0-115 (4) sft in Dec.
Im Spartacus 5-1 (10-12) Held up, headway 8th, ridden to lead last, ran on well, won at Southwell 2m 4f nov hdl (4) gs in Dec beating Raise Your Game (10-12) by 3l, 13 ran.
What Do'in (IRE) 14-1 (11-8) Held up in rear, headway 6th, hit and weakened 8th, 5th of 7, 42l behind Dinnie Flanagan (10-8) at Towcester 3m hcp hdl 0-115 (4) hvy in Nov.
Abzuson 50-1 (11-8) Led, headed after 3 out, soon ridden and weakened, 7th of 11, well behind Zaffie Parson (10-10) at Sedgefield 3m 3f hcp hdl 0-110 (4) sft in Dec.
