chased leaders, ridden halfway, soon beaten
chased leaders, ridden and hung right over 1f out, one-paced after
slowly into stride, towards rear, headway halfway, kept on final 2f, no impression
prominent, ridden to lead well over 1f out, headed entering final furlong, no extra inside final furlong
led, ridden and headed well over 1f out, soon weakened
very slowly into stride, always behind
behind, ridden and headway halfway, no impression after
mid-division, effort 2f out, soon ridden, kept on, nearest finish
mid-division, never nearer
chased leaders, ridden halfway, led entering final furlong, soon clear
A high draw is a big plus here and David Nicholls has been fortunate in that all three of his horses have a decent berth. The pick of them could just be American Cousin, who has shown signs in his last two starts that he may be coming in to form and is now fully 18 lbs lower than when winning at York last year. Marginal preference, though, goes to Beyond The Clouds. He has struggled a bit this year, but is on a winning mark and now reverts back to his right trip, having won twice already over course and distance. He goes well for his apprentice jockey and can land the spoils from his good draw.