tracked leading trio, ridden 2f out, weakened final furlong
steadied and slight bump leaving stalls, held up last, good headway on inside after cutaway, went 2nd inside final furlong, stayed on towards finish, not reach winner
bit keen, made all, stayed in centre of course at cutaway over 2f out, ridden over 1f out, stayed on strongly, unchallenged
in touch in 5th on rail, headway and went to inside chasing leaders after cutaway, weakened over 1f out
raced keenly, tracked leaders on rail, pushed along over 2f out, ridden over 1f out, stayed on same pace inside final furlong, went 3rd close home
keen and raced wide early tracking winner, pushed along over 2f out, lost 2nd and weakened inside final furlong, dropped to 4th close home
went right start, held up in last pair and keen, pushed along over 2f out, went to inside after cutaway and no real headway final furlong
NonRunner
Protected Guest appeared to have plenty in hand over 1m2f at Yarmouth 12 days ago but he’s 5lb higher here, though has been lightly raced this year. Durrell tries 1m4f for the first time and is no certainty to last home but may still be the best of the three-year-olds with Kosciuszko having a lot to prove on his efforts this season. Francis Xavier is another with stamina to prove but KOEMAN has run some of his best races around here. He’s never won off a mark this high but it’s hard to see him finishing out of the frame if he puts his best foot forward again.
Koeman 12-1 (9-6) Held up mid-division, improved on outside over 4f out, ridden over 1f out, stayed on final furlong, 4th of 10, 1l behind Indianapolis (9-7) at Ascot 1m 4f hcp (3) gd in Aug.
Protected Guest 16-1 (9-5) Held up in rear, smooth headway on outside well over 1f out, nudged along to lead close home, cleverly, won at Yarmouth 1m 2f hcp (2) fm in Aug beating Gifts Of Gold (10-3) by nk, 6 ran.
Francis Xavier (IRE) 10-1 (9-5) Held up mid-division, pushed along and effort over 2f out, ridden and edged left over 1f out, one pace final furlong, 5th of 12, 4 1/2l behind Spanish Archer (9-4) at Doncaster 1m 2f hcp (2) gs in Aug.
Breath Caught 10-1 (8-10) In touch towards rear, ridden and headway approaching final furlong, driven to chase winner inside final furlong, lost 2nd final strides, 3rd of 7, 1 1/4l behind Saroog (9-2) at Newmarket 1m 6f hcp (2) gf in Aug.
Kaloor 22-1 (9-7) Tracked leaders, ridden over 1f out, no impression, 5th of 8, 8 1/4l behind Desert Icon (8-12) at Salisbury 1m 4f hcp (3) gf in Jun.
Kosciuszko (IRE) 7-1 (8-11) Raced keenly, led 1f, settled tracking leaders, weakened over 2f out, 12th of 13, 17 3/4l behind Sir Ron Priestley (9-4) at Goodwood 1m 4f hcp (2) gd in Jul.
Durrell 9-2 (9-6) Tracked leaders, switched left off inside rail 4f out, pushed along and not quicken 2f out, rallied into 3rd towards finish, 3rd of 7, 3 3/4l behind Migration (9-7) at Sandown 1m 2f hcp (3) gd in Aug.
Restorer 28-1 (8-13) Mid-division on inside, pushed along 3f out, some headway over 2f out, soon beaten, 15th of 16, 12 3/4l behind Tamreer (8-8) at York 1m 4f hcp (2) gf in Aug.
