tracked leaders, mistake 6th, lost place 14th, stayed on under pressure after 3 out, challenged and just held for 2nf run-in, no chance with winner
not fluent 1st, always behind, unseated rider 13th
tracked leaders, blundered 11th, ridden 15th, left 3rd 4 out, weakened 2 out
held up, mistake 6th, headway from 15th, chased winner next, outpaced and no chance with winner soon after 3 out, just held on for 2nd
prominent, led 4th, drew clear soon after 3 out, eased flat
behind, driven and dropped rear 12th, tailed off when pulled up before 2 out
led to 4th, stayed tracking leader, challenged 10th, lost 2nd at 16th, close 3rd when unseated rider 4 out
raced keenly, close up until weakened 16th, tailed off when pulled up before last
Jumping, as usual with events of this nature, will be at a premium and as Alpine Slave and Chicago Bulls have a little to prove in this area, it may pay to stick with the lightly raced Elenas River, who shaped up well before tiring on his debut for his new yard last time. The Philip Hobbs-trained gelding has obviously had a few problems along the way but his solitary outing this season hinted that there are races to be won with him now that he appears to have got the hang of what is required of him. The son of Over The River travelled with eye-catching ease before tiring in the closing stages at Ludlow towards the end of last month - however, he was entitled to need that run as had been out of action for the best part of a year. The change of scenery since he switched from Henrietta Knight's yard may have rekindled his interest in racing and he has a good chance to notch his first win over fences in this company. Twenty Bucks is another that returned from a long absence last time and shaped with plenty of promise in finishing third to Tidour at Plumpton. However, he does have to conclusively prove his stamina for this trip so is taken on with Oliver Cromwell as the best of the rest. The Mandalus gelding has some useful form to his name from both areas of National Hunt racing and will be hard to shake-off if this becomes a test of stamina. However, he does lack a change of gears and is another prime candidate to find Elenas River has too much left in the locker at the finish.
