towards rear, effort when hit 2 out, soon weakened
led, soon clear until 4th, hit 6th, ridden and headed 2 out, soon weakened
held up towards rear, reminders approaching 4th, weakened next, tailed off
chased leaders, weakened from 3 out
tracked leaders, hit 4th, led 2 out, soon headed, no chance with winner
held up in rear, weakened 5th, tailed off from next
chased leader, weakened from 2 out
held up, weakened from 3 out
chased leaders, smooth headway 3 out, led after next, ran on well
held up, weakened from 5th, tailed off
SAMBULANDO did more than enough on debut to believe that he can win a race of this nature and is taken to get the better of Kack Handed and Thumbs Up.. Thumbs Up enters calculations back at a realistic level and the form of his debut effort has certainly been given a boost by the winner; he could be popular. Kack Handed struggled on his one start in handicap company and keeps finding at least one too strong in novices and maidens. He's bumped into fair sorts on both previous runs over course and distance and could prove hard to keep out of the frame. Support would look significant for any of French import Dona (who twice chased home US Ranger), Rouge Et Blanc (who failed to give his running at Perth having chased home Trenchant prior to that) or Tarvini (a well bred maiden winner for John Oxx) but Sambulando gets the nod. He was clear of the field when chasing home a progressive rival at Newton Abbot where he made much of the running and he may have derived sufficient improvement from that to be competitive here. We'll take that chance and select Sambulando.
Dona (10-5) 2nd of 11, 1/2l behind Reve D'icare (10-5) at Pau(FR) 2m hdl sft in Feb '08.
Kack Handed 4-1 (11-1) Chased leader, led after 3f out, headed near finish, 2nd of 14, 3/4l behind Ikorodu Road (11-1) at Southwell 2m NH mdn hdl (4) gd in Mar.
Mister Rez 200-1 (11-1) Held up, lost place before halfway, tailed off, 14th of 15, well behind Jubilee Queen (10-8) at Bangor 2m 1f cond & am NH flat (5) gs in Feb.
Morning Farewell 10-1 (11-0) Tracked leaders, ridden and every chance 2 out, one pace flat, 2nd of 17, 8l behind King's Head (11-0) at Huntingdon 2m hcp hdl 0-115 (4) gf in May '08.
Sambulando (FR) 5-1 (11-0) Led, hit 2nd, ridden and headed after 2 out, held when stumbled last, 2nd of 13, 7l behind Nearby (11-0) at Newton Abbot 2m 1f mdn hdl (4) gf in Mar.
Snark (IRE) 100-1 (10-12) Mistake 1st, always in rear, 14th of 18, well behind You're The Top (11-5) at Kempton 2m nh nov hdl (4) gd in Apr.
Rouge Et Blanc (FR) 8-1 (10-3) Always behind, tailed off when pulled up before 3 out, in a race won by South O'The Border (10-11) at Perth 2m 4f hcp hdl 0-140 (2) gd in Apr, 10 ran.
Tarvini (IRE) 4-1 (9-5) won at Dundalk 1m 4f mdn stks in Sep beating Tale Of Two Cities (9-5) by 1 1/4l, 14 ran (flat).
Thumbs Up 50-1 (11-0) Held up towards rear, headway after 6th, ridden 3 out, soon weakened, 4th when not fluent 2 out, 6th of 13, 41l behind Walkon (11-0) at Aintree 2m 4yo nov hdl G1 (1) gd in Apr.
Smiths Tempest 100-1 (11-1) Always towards rear, 10th of 20, 46l behind Lady Vera (11-1) at Warwick 2m mrs NH flat (4-7yo) (6) gs in Mar.