in touch, went 2nd over 8f out, weakened over 1f out
held up mid division, headway over 2f out, led over 1f out, driven out
held up towards rear, headway over 2f out, hung left over 1f out, not quicken
prominent, ridden well over 3f out, soon outpaced, easer over 1f out
held up, ridden over 4f out, headway over 3f out, one pace
held up, headway over 5f out, led over 3f out, headed over 1f out, one pace
mid-division, headway to lead over 9f out, ridden and headed over 3f out, weakened over 2f out
held up, ridden and headway over 2f out, weakened final furlong
behind, weakened over 5f out
mid-division, weakened over 5f out
tracked leaders, ridden over 3f out, weakened over 2f out
led, headed over 9f out, weakened over 3f out, tailed off
Kyber has solid claims in this company and is selected ahead of Colwyn Bay and Kristiansand. The last named has been kept busy over the jumps, so there are no worries about his fitness. However, he is not the speediest of individuals, so needs a little luck on his side. Colwyn Bay started life with Aidan O'Brien but is now with his fifth trainer since October 2004. However, Jane Chapple-Hyam has coaxed a couple of decent efforts out of him since he arrived in Newmarket and, as he could still be quite well handicapped, another bold bid cannot be ruled out. Previous course winner York Cliff is also worth a mention, as he has won off his current mark in the past and would not need to find much to figure strongly today. However, preference goes to Kyber, whose recent form is a touch more solid and he is expected to thrive whilst the conditions are in his favour.
Best Of The Lot (USA) 9-2 (8-3) Held up mid-division, weakened from over 2f out, 7th of 9, 16l behind Monolith (9-4) at Hamilton 1m 5f hcp 0-80 (4) gf.
York Cliff 7-1 (11-1) Mid-division, some progress 3f out, never dangerous, 4th of 12, 9l behind Hugs Destiny (10-13) at W'hampton 1m 4f amt hcp (6) pol.
Colwyn Bay (IRE) 2-1fav (8-10) Held up in rear, headway 6f out, ridden to lead 2f out, soon hung left, driven out final furlong, won at Kempton 2m hcp 0-50 (6) pol beating Gaelic Roulette (8-9) by 1 1/2l, 13 ran.
Gardasee (GER) 10-1 (8-2) Tracked leader, pushed along over 5f out, weakening when hampered over 2f out, 11th of 16, 45l behind Nowaday (8-7) at Beverley 2m hcp (5) gd in Jul '05.
Naughty Nod (IRE) 11-2 (9-10) Behind, ridden and kept on final 2f, never troubled leaders, 6th of 12, 14l behind Keisha Kayleigh (9-0) at Ripon 1m 2f 3yo & 4yo sll (5) gf in Apr.
Kristiansand 50-1 (8-9) Dwelt, always towards rear, 6th of 8, 8l behind Top Jaro (8-7) at Ayr 1m 1f hcp 0-85 (4) hvy in Oct.
Kristalchen 12-1 (8-5) Prominent, ridden along over 3f out, weakened over 2f out, 8th of 10, 20l behind Court Of Appeal (8-10) at Catterick 1m 4f clm (6) gf.
Brave Vision 7-1 (9-13) In touch, ridden over 2f out, effort over 1f out, no extra final furlong, 7th of 15, 3 1/2l behind Paddy Mul (9-6) at Musselburgh 2m amt clm stk (E) gf in May '02.
Allez Mousson 16-1 (8-7) Slowly into stride, soon behind, tailed off, 10th of 12, well behind Bulberry Hill (9-0) at Southwell 1m 4f banded stk (7) fbs in Dec '05.
Celtic Empire (IRE) 66-1 (8-5) Held up in rear, ridden, some headway over 3f out, weakened well over 2f out, 7th of 13, 30l behind Global Strategy (9-7) at Southwell 1m 6f hcp 0-65 (6) fbs in Feb.
The Dunion 66-1 (7-12) Tracked leaders, driven and outpaced over 6f out, ridden over 3f out, weakened over 1f out, 6th of 10, 10l behind Danzatrice (9-3) at Musselburgh 1m 6f hcp 0-65 (6) gf in Aug.
Watermill (IRE) 50-1 (7-13) Always behind, 10th of 13, 36l behind Trafalgar Day (9-4) at Southwell 2m hcp 0-65 (6) gd in Apr.
Kyber 15-8fav (9-5) Tracked clear leader, ridden over 3f out, headway to challenge until weakened over 1f out, 6th of 9, 8l behind Singhalongtasveer (9-2) at Musselburgh 2m app hcp (6) gf.
