held up and behind, steady progress 8th, led 2 out, pushed clear last, ridden and stayed on well
always prominent, went 2nd after 9th, ridden and every chance 2 out, one pace
chased leader until approaching 8th, reminder and soon pushed along, weakened after 9th, tailed off
always prominent, reminder after 5th, chased leader approaching 8th until after 9th, weakened 3 out
held up mid-division, lost place and not fluent 9th, struggling 3 out, stayed on approaching last, took 4th close home
led, hit 3 out, pushed along and headed 2 out, beaten when mistake last
held up mid-division, headway approaching 8th, reminder after 9th, weakened 3 out
always in rear, no chance from 9th
held up in rear, good headway on inside when blundered and lost place 9th, soon behind, tailed off
Cracker Jak came good in the spring, winning at Newbury and Exeter. He is 7lb higher on his return from a break but should still be thereabouts. Very Extravagant stays well and had probably had enough for the season when disappointing at Market Rasen at the end of March, though has switched stables since. Francky Du Berlais is back over hurdles having failed to win in four chase starts over the summer. He is the likely pace angle while Merry Milan is capable if fully wound-up. Final Choice tries hard and was second on his first try over this longer trip at Market Rasen but ALLELU ALLELUIA is well treated over hurdles compared to his chase rating and unexposed on today’s surface, on which he won at Aintree back in 2017.
Final Choice 20-1 (12-1) Held up behind, outpaced after 3 out, headway under pressure before next, soon ridden, stayed on to challenge and every chance after last, no extra final 50 yards, 2nd of 8, 5l behind Jen's Boy (10-12) at Market Rasen 2m 7f hcp (4) gd in Aug.
Merry Milan (IRE) 4-1 (11-12) Close up, tracked leader 9th, ridden 4 out, weakened 3 out, tailed off, last of 10, dist behind Steel Bob (11-1) at Plumpton 3m 1f hcp (3) sft in Mar.
Allelu Alleluia (GER) 5-1 (11-9) Held up in last, not fluent 5th, ridden and outpaced before 2 out, no impression, last of 4, 9l behind Jacks Last Hope (11-12) at Sedgefield 3m 3f hcp (3) gd in Sep.
Francky Du Berlais (FR) 9-2 (11-4) Led, mistake 1st, not fluent and headed 6th, slow and lost place 8th, weakened before 4 out, 5th of 6, 29 1/4l behind Mellow Ben (11-4) at Worcester 2m 4f (4) gd in Sep.
On The Road (IRE) 14-1 (10-5) Held up in touch, mistake 1st, not fluent next, weakened 4 out, rallied after 2 out, no chance with leaders, modest 3rd, 3rd of 6, 23 1/2l behind Pobbles Bay (11-4) at Ffos Las 3m 4f hcp (3) gd in Apr.
Cracker Jak (IRE) 5-1 (10-13) Raced wide, chased leaders, tracked leader 2nd, led 6th, made rest, ridden and kept on strongly from next, won at Exeter 2m 6f hcp (4) gd in Apr beating Gambling Gamut (10-10) by 2 1/2l, 13 ran.
Very Extravagant (IRE) 6-1 (11-11) Tracked leaders, lost place after 3 out, soon well beaten, 7th of 13, 15 1/2l behind Acertain Circus (11-7) at Market Rasen 2m 7f hcp (4) gd in Mar.
Bolton Boy (IRE) 9-1 (11-2) Towards rear, behind from 7th, 9th of 10, dist behind Misty Bloom (11-5) at Warwick 2m 5f hcp (4) gf in Sep.
No Alarm (IRE) 9-2 (11-12) Held up in mid-division, headway when not fluent 3 out, challenged before 2 out, soon found little, weakened flat, 6th of 10, 20 1/2l behind Polarbrook (10-13) at Market Rasen 2m 5f hcp (5) gd in May.
Another Frontier (IRE) 8-1 (11-10) Held up, under pressure 5 out, weakened next, behind when pulled up 3 out, at Bangor-on-Dee 3m 6f hcp (4) gd in Apr.
