held up, headway 3f out, ridden to lead over 1f out, ran on
soon held up in rear, ridden and lost touch 5f out
chased leaders, effort and every chance, hung left over 2f out, weakened approaching final furlong
held up in touch, effort over 3f out, ridden and weakened approaching 2f out
dwelt, held up in last place, ridden 4f out, never nearer
tracked leader until over 4f out, ridden and soon weakened
led at strong gallop, ridden 4f out, headed over 1f out, kept on
held up towards rear, effort when not clear run approaching 2f out, soon switched left, kept on one pace
In an interesting Listed race, Frank Sonata and Bull Run get short listed but the vote goes to Orcadian. In fairness, aside from Bull Run, many of these are closely weighted and we look set for a good race. A repeat of his front-running St Simon Stakes third place - he soon had the field on the stretch and was only caught close home - would see Orcadian go close. If he is to get nabbed this time it could be by Frank Sonata, for whom the softer the going the better, as he has plenty of good form at this level, or Alfie Flits, who also has perfomed solidly at this level. Bull Run was a genuine Derby contender when last seen on the track but this unbeaten-in-two colt has not been seen on the track for 927 days. The market should guide, while it is possible that a step up in trip today could bring some more improvement from Take A Bow, and another long-term absentee, Centaurus, has the potential to make up into a Listed performer or better. Overall, though, we will stick with Orcadian to make up for that brave Newbury effort.
Alfie Flits 9-2 (9-3) Chased leader to 3f out, weakened quickly, 10th of 11, 29l behind Short Skirt (8-10) at Newbury 1m 4f Grp 3 (1) hvy in Oct.
Bull Run (IRE) 13-8fav (8-13) Settled behind leaders, going well to lead well over 2f out, drew well clear entering final furlong, eased, won at Epsom 1m 2f 3yo stk (B) sft in Apr '04 beating Bowstring (8-8) by 15l, 4 ran.
Camrose 16-1 (9-0) Held up, headway over 5f out, weakened well over 1f out, 7th of 14, 28l behind Degas Art (8-6) at Newmarket 1m 4f lst stk (1) sft in Sept.
Centaurus 9-2 (8-12) Led, joined 4f out, soon ridden, headed well over 1f out, kept on one pace, 2nd of 6, 5l behind Art Eyes (8-7) at Newmarket 1m 6f 3yo lst stk (1) gd in Sept '05.
Midas Way 33-1 (9-0) Tracked leaders, pushed along over 5f out, weakened over 2f out, 6th of 7, 44l behind Hawridge Prince (9-0) at Newmarket 2m Grp 3 (1) gs in Oct.
Orange Touch (GER) 66-1 (9-9) Held up, some headway over 2f out, soon no impression, 8th of 13, 11l behind Counterpunch (8-7) at Newmarket 1m 4f hcp 0-100 (2) gs in Oct.
Orcadian 14-1 (9-3) Led, hung right over 2f out, stayed on until driven and headed inside final furlong, 3rd of 11, 2l behind Short Skirt (8-10) at Newbury 1m 4f Grp 3 (1) hvy in Oct.
Take A Bow 5-1 (9-2) Mid-division, ridden 4f out, stayed on final furlong, not pace to challenge, 4th of 8, 7l behind Into The Dark (9-2) at Newmarket 1m 2f lst stk (1) gs in Oct.
Frank Sonata (9-4) Prominent, weakened quickly 2f out, last of 10, 24l behind Montare (9-1) at Longchamp 1m 7f Grp 1 (1) gd in Oct.
