held up, headway on outside to challenge 2 out, soon ridden, kept on and every chance, held towards finish
held up, headway 2 out, ridden and stayed on to lead after last, held on towards finish
chased leaders, hit 3 out, soon outpaced, kept on under pressure from next, no impression
tracked leaders, led after 2nd, headed before 3 out, weakened next
chased leaders, headway to lead narrowly before 2 out, ridden and headed after last, kept on until no extra towards finish
disputed lead to 2nd, tracked leaders, challenged 5th, led briefly before 3 out, outpaced next, no impression approaching last
led to after 2nd, tracked leader, led again 3 out, headed before next, no extra approaching last
held up, headway and effort when hit 2 out, soon ridden, kept on same pace approaching last
Nonrunner
Amir Pasha is bound to be popular with backers having won his last two starts but a 3lb rise for the latest of those in a narrow victory at Catterick leaves Micky Hammond's gelding with no easy task of completing the hat-trick and it may be worth siding with MOHAYER, who gets the vote ahead of Dreams Jewel. The last mentioned showed improved form at Taunton last month and a reproduction of that effort will see him go close. The Evan Williams-trained Akarshan is hard to back with confidence having been well held in both starts this term but he is surely better than he has shown in those outings so cannot be completely discounted. Nigel Tinkler's Frank Crow ran below par when last seen at Perth in July 2008 but his earlier form was solid and has to be considered following his long absence, especially if the market speaks in his favour. John Quinn's Blazing Desert is relatively lightly raced and has to be considered but he has yet to prove his effectiveness on ground this soft and a better bet looks to be Mohayer. Jonjo O'Neill's gelding ran better at Taunton last month and he looks worth siding with in a poor contest by the tracks standards having slipped to a fair mark.
Mohayer (IRE) 16-1 (11-7) In rear when hampered 3rd, moderate late progress, never in contention, 5th of 14, 14l behind Chaninbar (11-11) at Taunton 2m 1f hcp hdl 0-120 (3) sft in Dec.
Akarshan (IRE) 20-1 (11-7) Towards rear, hit 1st, behind when pulled up before 12th, in a race won by Absolute Shambles (10-7) at Huntingdon 3m nov hcp chs 0-110 (4) gs in Dec, 14 ran.
Blazing Desert 8-1 (11-5) Held up towards rear, not fluent 8th, headway approaching 3 out, no chance with winner when mistake last, weakened flat, 6th of 11, 18l behind Always Bold (11-0) at Uttoxeter 3m nh nov hdl (4) gf in Jun.
Campanile 10-1 (10-12) Took keen hold, held up in rear until pulled up before 9th, in a race won by Noble Crusader (11-3) at Ludlow 2m hcp chs 0-120 (3) sft in Dec, 8 ran.
Dreams Jewel 14-1 (10-7) Chased leaders, pushed along well before last, soon outpaced by front pair, no impression and lost 3rd towards finish, 4th of 14, 10l behind Chaninbar (11-11) at Taunton 2m 1f hcp hdl 0-120 (3) sft in Dec.
Jardin De Vienne (FR) 5-1fav (11-8) Mid-division, headway approaching 4th, ridden next, weakened approaching 2 out, 5th of 15, 20l behind Victory Surge (11-2) at Warwick 2m hcp hdl 0-105 (4) sft in Dec.
Tipsy Indian 20-1 (11-2) Mid-division, driven and outpaced approaching 3 out, soon weakened, 6th of 10, 38l behind Sumak (11-7) at Sedgefield 2m 1f hcp hdl 0-110 (4) sft in Dec.
Amir Pasha (UAE) 9-1 (11-3) Held up in touch, chased leaders 3 out, led last, driven out, just held on, won at Catterick 2m 3f am hcp hdl 0-100 (4) gs in Dec beating Oscar Trial (9-11) by shd, 17 ran.
Frank Crow 20-1 (11-2) Held up towards rear, some headway 4 out, never troubled leaders, 5th of 14, 25l behind Tranos (10-4) at Perth 2m hcp hdl 0-125 (3) gf in Jul '08.
