raced keenly, headway chasing leaders 2nd led 4th, headed before 2 out, dropped to 3rd and one pace before the last
well in rear, mistake 7th, tailed off 15th, pulled up before 3 out
held up in last pair, pushed along before 12th, short-lived effort after 4 out, soon beaten
mistakes, chased leaders until blundered badly 6th, towards rear, mistake 10th, not fluent 12th, tailed off 15th, pulled up before 18th
always towards rear, tailed off and pulled up before 3 out
chased leaders, weakened 3 out
led until 4th, chased leaders, blundered and weakened 3 out
mid-division on inside, jumped slowly 3rd, mistake and lost place 12th, behind 14th and no chance after, tailed off
raced wide in mid-division, towards rear and hit 13th, tailed off
chased leaders, pushed along and outpaced in 5th after 4 out, plugged on in 4th from next
chased leaders, went 2nd at 10th, led before 2 out, hung left under pressure and headed run-in, straightened and led again towards finish
chased leader until 10th, handy 3rd, ridden and went 2nd again before the last, led run-in, headed and no extra towards finish
ACHILLE has been raised 7lb for winning at Exeter but may still be a step ahead of the handicapper and Hugh Nugent takes off a handy 7lb again. Holbrook Park and Scotchtown are closely matched on their run together at Lingfield in the autumn but Mendip Express continues to roll back the years and goes well here while Darius Des Bois remains open to further improvement after just the two runs over fences. Two Smokin Barrels, Bramble Brook and Thedrinkymeister are all capable of playing a part but Salmanazar last ran over fences in 2015. Strong Pursuit faces a very stiff task under top weight after a lengthy spell on the sidelines.
Strong Pursuit (IRE) 4-1 (11-5) Made all, jumped well, challenged before 2 out, drew clear last, ran on strongly, won at Newbury 2m 6f (3) gs in Nov beating Morello Royale (10-12) by 2 3/4l, 4 ran.
Duel At Dawn (IRE) 7-1 (10-5) Held up towards rear, pushed along 12th, headway before 16th, lost place 4 out, 9th of 12, dist behind Impulsive Star (10-1) at Warwick 3m 5f hcp (1) gd in Jan.
Kansas City Chief (IRE) 25-1 (10-6) Mid-division, mistake 16th, headway 5 out, no impression, well beaten 3 out, pulled up after, at Chepstow 3m 5f hcp (1) sft in Dec.
Darius Des Bois (FR) 5-2fav (11-10) Held up in 5th, lost place before 8th, pushed along in 6th and looked struggling before 3 out, finally picked up and ran on into 2nd last 75 yards, too late to threaten, 2nd of 8, 7l behind Larry (11-11) at Sandown 2m 4f hcp (3) gs in Jan.
Holbrook Park 3-1 (11-11) Led, ridden and headed approaching last, no extra and lost 3rd close home, 4th of 5, 13l behind Militarian (11-12) at Fakenham 2m 5f hcp (3) gs in Dec.
Mendip Express (IRE) 6-1 (11-12) Held up in touch, tracked leaders after 3 out (usual 4 out), ridden to challenge approaching last, led soon after, stayed on under pressure flat (3rd last fence omitted on both circuits), won at Sandown 3m hcp (3) sft in Dec beating Thomas Crapper (11-8) by 5l, 8 ran.
Thedrinkymeister (IRE) 4-1 (11-12) Pressed winner, led 4 out, headed before next, no impression on winner 2 out, kept on, 2nd of 6, 2 3/4l behind Ascot De Bruyere (11-2) at Newcastle 2m 7f hcp (3) gs in Jan.
Two Smokin Barrels 5-1 (11-0) Led until 8th, pressed leader, pushed along before 3 out, led again approaching 2 out where mistake and went right, headed before last, no extra run-in, 2nd of 3, 2 3/4l behind Molly Childers (11-3) at Wincanton 3m 1f hcp (3) gd in Jan.
Bramble Brook 16-1 (11-6) Prominent, pushed along and no impression in 4th place when mistake 3 out, 4th of 9, 20 3/4l behind Touch Kick (11-11) at Taunton 2m 7f hcp (3) sft in Feb.
Salmanazar 6-1 (11-1) Tracked leaders, ridden to chase clear winner 3 out, no impression from next, 2nd of 7, 10l behind Knock House (11-4) at Bangor 2m 7f hcp (3) sft in Dec.
Achille (FR) 6-1 (10-11) Tracked leader, led 2nd, made rest, hit 11th, clear when went right 3 out and next, stayed on strongly, ridden out, won at Exeter 3m hcp (3) gs in Jan beating Le Boizelo (11-7) by 5l, 11 ran.
Scotchtown (IRE) 10-1 (10-11) Chased leader, led 5th, joined 4 out, headed 2 out, chased leader, until ridden between last 2, rallied to hold every chance run-in, went 3rd towards finish, 3rd of 10, 2l behind Carole's Destrier (11-12) at Newbury 3m 2f hcp (3) gs in Dec.
