tracked leader, ridden to lead briefly approaching 2f out, kept on one pace final furlong
hampered start, held up in touch, ridden over 2f out, no impression over 1f out
ridden, soon led, ridden and headed approaching 2f out, weakened over 1f out
dwelt, mid-divion, ridden and headway over 1f out, chased winner inside final furlong, ran on
went right start, chased leaders, ridden halfway, weakened final furlong
tracked leaders, led 2f out, ridden and ran on
went right start, always in rear
raced wide, close up, ridden and every chance 2f out, kept on same pace final furlong
hampered start, always in rear
raced in last place, kept on final furlong, never nearer leaders
dwelt, always in rear
In the hope that Fuzzy Cat (16:10) has given a boost to the form of their meeting two outings ago, FULFORD gets the vote to land the lucky last from Only A Game and Don Pele. Mel Brittain's animal has been unfortunate not to oblige since scoring in early February, first bumping in to the well-treated Fuzzy Cat and then going down by a short-head last time. His rating has risen accordingly, but that last effort came over seven furlongs and this drop to six can help extract an even better performance from the five-year-old. Only A Game has won better races off higher marks in the past but this is very much his level these days. The gelding won a decent little contest at Lingfield in December and is just 3lbs higher here, so as a horse who copes well with the demands of this surface he must enter calculations whilst in good form. Likewise, Don Pele is adaptable with regards surface and six furlongs is his ideal distance, so with confidence restored following an overdue win last time Ron Harris' horse is another with decent claims, although he occasionally misses the kick which is enough to see us cast our gaze elsewhere. Zeffirelli has a similar profile to Only A Game in that he's only a couple of pounds higher than when winning here recently, but he's far from consistent and can generally be opposed with confidence, although a first-time visor may sharpen the horse up. At a price Cape Of Storms is interesting as he's been racing over an inadequate five furlongs recently, resulting in a nice handicap mark for this return to six. Captain Kallis has been tried in various types of headgear but seems to have a mind of his own, so we'll return to the consistent Fulford for the finale.
Don Pele (IRE) 5-1 (8-11) Tracked leaders, ridden over 1f out, stayed on under pressure inside final furlong to lead post, won at Kempton 6f hcp 0-65 (6) pol in Feb beating Muktasb (8-0) by ns, 6 ran.
Cape of Storms 12-1 (9-4) Tracked leaders, ridden halfway, weakened over 1f out, 9th of 14, 9l behind Restless Genius (8-12) at Southwell 5f hcp 0-60 (6) fbs in Feb.
Zeffirelli 6-1 (9-1) Chased leaders on inside, pushed along 3f out, weakened 2f out, 4th of 7, 16l behind Flores Sea (8-12) at Southwell 7f sell stks (6) fbs in Feb.
Fulford 5-2fav (8-6) Held up in rear travelling well, switched inside halfway, headway to challenge leader over 1f out, driven to lead inside final furlong, headed post, 2nd of 9, shd behind Resplendent Nova (9-1) at Southwell 7f hcp 0-65 (6) fbs in Feb.
Only A Game (IRE) 3-1 (9-1) Held up, towards rear, switched right and headway over 1f out, chased leaders inside final furlong, never nearer, 3rd of 10, 3 1/2l behind White Shift (8-11) at Wolverhampton 6f hcp 0-60 (6) pol in Feb.
Gracie's Gift (IRE) 20-1 (8-5) Held up towards rear, some headway and switched left over 1f out, ridden and no impression final furlong, 7th of 11, 9l behind Global Village (8-13) at Wolverhampton 7f hacp 0-70 (5) pol in Feb.
Royal Envoy (IRE) 20-1 (8-13) Slowly away, always in rear, 10th of 12, 9l behind Bishopbriggs (9-2) at Wolverhampton 6f hcp 0-60 (6) pol in Jan.
Captain Kallis (IRE) 9-1 (9-2) Led, headed over 4f out, ridden and weakened inside final furlong, 7th of 12, 4l behind Sign of The Cross (9-2) at Lingfield 7f hcp (0-55) (6) pol.
Conjecture 14-1 (8-10) Dwelt, short of room soon after start, in rear and never a factor, 7th of 11, 7l behind Cwmni (8-11) at Lingfield 6f hcp 0-52 (6) pol in Feb.
Reprieved 33-1 (8-1) Led after 1f, keen and soon clear until headed over 3f out, soon weakened, 9th of 11, 43l behind Thorny Mandate (9-3) at Wolverhampton 1m 6f hcp 0-60 (6) pol in Mar '09.
Miss Thippawan (USA) 66-1 (8-12) Dwelt, behind and 4 lengths off the field, ridden and some headway over 1f out, never nearer, 4th of 8, 8l behind Not My Choice (9-8) at Southwell 6f sell stks (6) fbs in Feb.
