always in rear
held up, effort 2f out, stayed on and edging slightly right towards finish
in touch, headway on inside 1f out to join leaders, one pace
tracked leaders, ridden over 1f out, weakened final furlong
towards rear, some progress over 2f out
in touch, keen, ridden 2f out, weakened over 1f out
towards rear, short lived effort over 2f out
tracked leader, ridden 2f out, led inside final furlong, ridden out
held up, good late headway from over 1f out, not reach leaders
led, ridden 2f out, hard driven and headed inside final furlong
EFISTORM is wily enough to land the finale. Light Hearted and Artistic License can give the selection a hard time along the way, while Tia Maria has claims on the pick of her efforts and is a lively outsider. Tia Maria has been hard to win with so far, though, and is not one to trust implicitly. Artistic License won off a 4lb lower mark on her penultimate start but was a little below that standard at Hamilton three weeks ago. Still, this is her ideal trip and, as she is a tough customer to deal with when she gets it right, the Mick Channon-trained filly cannot be discounted. Light Hearted was clobbered by the handicapper after winning her first two starts in good style. But her latest efforts have cast a shadow of doubt over her standing in the ratings. A mark of 83 looks harsh for what she has actually achieved and she needs to post a much-improved effort to stay ahead of the game. Therefore, this may be best left to a proven campaigner like Efistorm, whose consistency is a great tool at this level. A draw is stall 12 is also a big plus and it will come as no surprise to see Efistorm exploit any weakness shown by the rest.
Stanley Goodspeed 10-1 (8-1) Held up, headway 2f out, driven to lead inside final furlong, kept on gamely, won at Haydock 6f hcp 0-100 (2) gd in Sept '06 beating Knot In Wood (8-9) by a shd, 12 ran.
Dazed And Amazed 9-2 (9-7) Held up towards rear, headway 2f out, led 1f out, pushed out, won at Bath 5f clm (6) gf in Sept beating Desperate Dan (8-6) by 3/4l, 12 ran.
Tia Mia 6-1 (8-8) Held up, ridden halfway, not trouble leaders, 9th of 14, 7l behind Elhamri (8-9) at Great Leighs 5f hcap (3) pol in Sept.
Light Hearted 3-1fav (9-2) Close up, not clear run 2f out, unable to challenge final furlong, 5th of 9, 2l behind Vhujon (9-3) at Kempton 6f 3yo hcp (4) pol in Sept.
Artistic License (IRE) 7-1 (8-9) Tracked leader, ridden over 2f out, kept on one pace final furlong, 3rd of 7, 3l behind Prescription (8-4) at Hamilton 6f fll hcp (3) sft in Sept.
Playful 11-2 (9-7) Held up, headway over 1f out and in touch, soon ridden, no impression final furlong, 6th of 11, 3 1/2l behind Cheveton (9-10) at Newbury 5f hcp 0-85 (4) gd in Aug.
Farthermost (IRE) 5-1 (9-1) Raced centre, prominent, under pressure halfway, weakened over 2f out, 11th of 12, 13l behind Silver Wind (9-2) at Ascot 6f 3yo hcp (4) gf in Jul.
Dvinsky (USA) 6-1 (9-4) Chased leaders, effort over 1f out, stayed on same pace, 3rd of 9, 6l behind Beat The Bell (8-4) at Great Leighs 6f hcp 0-80 (4) pol.
Mogok Ruby 12-1 (9-1) Towards rear, ridden over 2f out, stayed on one pace final furlong, 8th of 15, 4 1/2l behind Kelamon (8-8) at Salisbury 6f hcp 0-85 (4) gd.
Peter Island (FR) 15-2 (9-12) Prominent, ridden and every chance 2f out, one pace final furlong, 9th of 16, 6l behind Memphis Man (9-1) at Windsor 6f hcp 0-75 (5) gf in Sept.
Efistorm 8-1 (9-3) Went right start, mid-division, ridden over 2f out, soon outpaced, 11th of 16, 10l behind Judge 'n Jury (9-0) at Ascot 5f app hcp (4) gs.
Vintage (IRE) 7-1 (8-7) Held up on inside, not clear run on rails over 1f out until switched sharply right final 75yards, ran on and closed on winner near finish, not quite get up, 2nd of 11, nk behind Safari Mischief (9-2) at Lingfield 6f hcp 0-90 (3) pol.
