in rear, effort on outer 2f out, kept on inside final furlong
led 1f, chased winner after, ridden to lead again well over 1f out, headed inside final furlong, stayed on
slowly into stride, outpaced, ridden halfway, never dangerous
keen, chased leaders, ridden 2f out, edged left approaching final furlong, eased inside final furlong
dwelt, pushed along to lead after 1f, ridden and headed well over 1f out, rallied to lead inside final furlong, gamely
chased leading pair, ridden 2f out, no extra inside final furlong
keen, held up in rear, headway when not clear run approaching final furlong, kept on
in rear, pushed along halfway, headway and switched right 1f out, driven and ran on to take 3rd inside final furlong
pulled hard, chased leaders, ridden halfway, weakened over 1f out
chased leaders over 3f
Qadar gets the vote ahead of Maltese Falcon, Turn On The Style, Stoneacre Lad and Distinctly Game. This promises to be a close-knit affair, but Qadar has been a model of consistency and despite having to carry 9st 6lb, has a good chance at the weights of coming out on top. He beat Maltese Falcon here in January, giving that rival 3lb, and had to concede 4lb when just behind Paul Cole's charge last time. They meet off levels here, so Qadar, with the blinkers on, should run a big race. Turn On The Style has been a reformed character since switching stables, and broke the course record here last time. He made all from the outside box last time, but is drawn in stall one here and might need luck-in-running, added to which he is racing off a higher mark. Stoneacre Lad bounced back to form on his last outing at Southwell in December, but has been off since, and has only raced here once before, while Distinctly Game did nothing wrong at Kempton, but is upped two grades. That makes his task tougher, and for the winner we return to Qadar.
Qadar (IRE) 4-1 (9-6) Prominent, ridden to chase leader 2f out, kept on one pace final furlong, 3rd of 10, 2l behind Areyoutalkingtome (10-0) at Lingfield 5f hcp 0-100 (2) pol.
Maltese Falcon 3-1 (9-2) Broke well, led, ridden over 1f out, hung right inside final furlong, caught post, 2nd of 10, shd behind Areyoutalkingtome (10-0) at Lingfield 5f hcp 0-100 (2) pol.
One More Round (USA) 16-1 (8-11) In rear, ridden and ran on final furlong, nearest finish, 5th of 10, 3l behind Areyoutalkingtome (10-0) at Lingfield 5f hcp 0-100 (2) pol.
Classic Encounter (IRE) 14-1 (8-10) Held up in rear, switched inside, an effort approaching final furlong, kept on, 6th of 10, 4l behind Areyoutalkingtome (10-0) at Lingfield 5f hcp 0-100 (2) pol.
Turn On The Style 3-1 (9-4) Quickly away, made virtually all, ridden 3 lengths clear 1f out, unchallenged final furlong, won at Lingfield 5f hcp 0-75 (5) pol in Jan beating Financial Times (9-2) by 2l, 9 ran.
Stoneacre Lad (IRE) 22-1 (8-11) Went right start, chased leader, led over 1f out, edged left and ridden out final furlong, won at Southwell 5f hcap (3) fbs in Dec beating Moorhouse Lad (8-11) by 1l, 10 ran.
Talbot Avenue 16-1 (8-9) Held up, ridden 2f out, never troubled leaders, 6th of 8, 5l behind Qadar (9-2) at W'hampton 6f hcp 0-100 (2) pol in Jan.
Distinctly Game 8-1 (9-1) Prominent, short of room over 2f out, ridden to lead just over 1f out, soon in command, driven out, won at Kempton 6f hcp 0-85 (4) pol in Jan beating Perfect Story (9-2) by 1l, 8 ran.
