held up in rear, not fluent 5th, mistake 9th, headway 3 out, went 2nd next, every chance last, stayed on same pace flat
held up, hampered 3rd, headway 9th, went 2nd 3 out until 2 out, not fluent last, one pace flat
took keen hold, jumped left at times, made all, hung left from before 8th, pressed last, stayed on well, clear towards finish
jumped big, tracked leaders, slow 3rd, ridden and weakened before 2 out
chased winner until 3 out, soon weakened, pulled up before 2 out
Nonrunner
The four-year-old Mustadrik has already had nine runs in handicaps and is facing a stiff task here conceding weight all round. Veteran chaser Isla Pearl Fisher is likely to need this while Major Ivan hasn't raced since May and bumper winner Ballywilliam makes his hurdling debut after a break. TRADEWINDS is back in the UK after a spell with Michael Hourigan. He showed that 3m was his trip when scoring at Bellewstown last month and can make a winning start for Lucinda Russell. Winning pointer Kerisper will make a chaser in time but should pick up a race over hurdles before tackling the larger obstacles.
Mustadrik (USA) 11-4fav (10-8) Held up in 5th early, dropped to last and pushed along 5 out, ridden 3 out, moderate 6th when slight mistake 2 out, kept on one paced, 4th of 7, 6 1/4l behind Don Vincenzo (11-7) at Downpatrick 2m 5f hcp gd in Aug.
Major Ivan (IRE) 8-13fav (11-5) Tracked winner, ridden before last, kept on and always held, 2nd of 7, 6l behind Sharp Rise (10-12) at Sedgefield 2m 4f (4) sft in May.
Tradewinds (FR) 10-1 (11-7) Tracked leaders, 3rd from 8th, on terms 4 out, just led before last, stayed on best run-in, won at Bellewstown 3m hcp sft in Aug beating Na Trachtalai Abu (11-1) by 3l, 12 ran.
Ballywilliam (IRE) 15-8fav (11-5) Made all, clear over 1f out, easily, won at Chepstow 2m mdn (6) sft in Feb beating Far From Defeat (11-5) by 12l, 9 ran.
Kerisper (FR) 7-2 (11-4) Led, hung left on bend and bit slipped over 2f out, soon ridden and straightened, headed and not quicken final 100 yards, 2nd of 9, 1 1/2l behind Armchair Theatre (11-11) at Ludlow 2m (5) gs in Mar.
Isla Pearl Fisher 12-1 (11-12) Behind, detatched 5th, never a factor, pulled up before 14th, at Kelso 3m 2f hcp (3) gd in Apr.
