chased leaders, hit 10th, ridden 4 out, went 2nd before 3 out, switched right run-in, kept on to lead towards finish
took keen hold, soon tracked leaders, led 10th, ridden 3 out, no extra and headed towards finish
led, hit 9th, headed 10th, pushed along and weakened after 3 out
chased leader, ridden 4 out, upsides when fell next
Fennis Boy will make a bold bid to follow up last month's C&D win but that was achieved on soft ground and conditions today may suit SAGREDO better. Jonjo O'Neill's unexposed eight-year-old got outpaced over 2m over hurdles at Southwell last month but won well over the larger obstacles at Worcester previously and has more scope than his rivals. Pilgrims Lane has staged something of a revival lately but has crept back up the weights as a result while Beggar's Velvet had his limitations exposed at Worcester and Prince Des Marais hasn't won for a long time.
Pilgrims Lane (IRE) 11-1 (11-4) Held up in rear, headway after 9th, went 2nd approaching 3 out, led 2 out, headed and rider dropped whip flat, held towards finish, 2nd of 8, 1 1/4l behind Ogee (11-10) at Worcester 2m 7f hcp hdl 0-135 (3) gd in Jul.
Sagredo (USA) 9-1 (11-8) Held up behind on outside, headway to join leaders, before 3 out, every chance next, soon lost place, weakened last, 6th of 11, 15l behind Tarkari (11-10) at Southwell 2m hcp hdl 0-125 (3) gd in Jul.
Prince Des Marais (FR) 12-1 (11-12) Tracked leader, joined leader 6th, ridden before 3 out, rallied from last, kept on to lead towards finish, soon headed and no extra, lost 2nd place close home, 3rd of 10, 1/2l behind Park Lane (11-5) at Market Rasen 2m 2f hcp chs 0-120 (4) gd in Jul.
Beggar's Velvet (IRE) 6-1 (11-5) Held up, headway 13th, jumped right and fluent 4 out, beaten when jumped right and not fluent 3 out, 6th of 10, well behind Johnny's Way (10-12) at Worcester 2m 7f nov chs (4) gd in Jun.
Fennis Boy (IRE) 6-4fav (11-10) Tracked leaders, left 2nd and hampered 7th, led after 11th, jumped right last 2, stayed on well, won at Market Rasen 2m 4f beg chs (4) sft in Jul beating Lion On The Prowl (11-10) by 8l, 5 ran.
