held up behind leaders, ridden after 10th, one pace from 3 out
held up, hit 9th, headway after 10th, effort after 3 out, no extra approaching last
chased leaders, lost place 4th, headway 8th, went right 10th, ridden after 3 out, every chance last
chased leader, led 8th until bumped at 10th, ridden to lead after 3 out, headed last, not quicken
held up last, headway after 10th, short lived effort 3 out
led, stumbled badly 7th, headed next, led 10th, blundered badly 3 out, headed and weakened
chased leader, ridden approaching 3 out, soon one pace
held up, smooth headway from 3 out, led last, pushed clear, readily
A chance is taken with Tanikos ahead of Almaydan and Vinmix De Bessy. Well Chief and Dempsey have won this race in recent years but there's nothing of their quality in this line-up and few are screaming out to be backed. Publican has the ability but has been frustrating to follow, Bleu Superbe has never shone here, Kalca Mome and Magic Sky are essentially high enough in the weights. That last comment also applies to Almaydan but he's proved his competitiveness from this mark and will handle conditions. Vinmix De Bessy has scope for improvement but has softer ground and a 9lb higher mark to contend with. It would be no surprise to see Natal fare better here and he could be the best handicapped horse in the race. There's a slight question mark over his current form though and he may have bigger targets further down the line whereas Tanikos, who falls into the same area as Almaydan with regard to his mark, appears to have plenty going for him and this could be his best chance of having a crack at a decent prize.
Kalca Mome (FR) 20-1 (11-8) Mid-division, mistake 8th, lost place and behind 10th, 13th of 14, well behind Vodka Bleu (10-13) at Cheltenham 2m 5f lst hcp chs (1) gs in Jan.
Magic Sky (FR) 9-2 (11-0) Held up, ridden and outpaced after 5 out, kept on same pace, no impression, 5th of 9, 10l behind Calatagan (11-2) at Wetherby 2m hcp chs (2) gs in Dec.
Natal (FR) 12-1 (11-2) Held up in rear, promising headway 15th, driven after 3 out, beaten when mistake next, 8th of 13, 22l behind Vodka Bleu (10-3) at Ascot 3m lst hcp chs (1) gf in Dec.
Almaydan 7-1 (11-12) Made most to approaching 2 out, headed before last, not clear run on inside and switched right towards finish, stayed on, 3rd of 8, 1l behind Letalus (10-10) at Warwick 2m hcp chs 0-135 (3) hvy in Jan.
Publican (IRE) 10-1 (10-9) Towards rear, steady headway from before 3 out, soon moderate 2nd, no impression under pressure from last, soon dropped to 3rd, 3rd of 11, 7l behind Kranji (9-11) at Leopardstown 2m 1f hcp chs 0-140 gd in Dec.
Bleu Superbe (FR) 20-1 (10-10) Led, hit 3rd, jumped left and headed 3 out, weakened after 2 out, 5th of 8, 11l behind Master Minded (11-7) at Sandown 2m hcp chs (2) gs in Jan.
Tanikos (FR) 13-2 (10-13) Held up, headway 4th, led 6th, headed approaching 2 out, led again before last, headed last strides, 2nd of 8, shd behind Letalus (10-10) at Warwick 2m hcp chs 0-135 (3) hvy in Jan.
Vinmix De Bessy (FR) 7-2jt-fav (11-4) Towards rear, headway after 5 out, led 2 out, driven clear, won at Ludlow 2m hcp chs 0-120 (3) gd in Dec beating Majorca (11-2) by 5l, 10 ran.
Oneway (IRE) 14-1 (11-9) Held up, ridden and outpaced approaching 3 out, no impression, 7th of 9, 23l behind Calatagan (11-2) at Wetherby 2m hcp chs (2) gs in Dec.
