led early, tracked leader, ridden and weakened over 2f out
tracked leaders and keen, went 4f out, led 2f out, ridden and headed inside final furlong, soon beaten
chased leaders on outer, led over 5f out, pushed along 4f out, headed 2f out, no extra
held up in rear but in touch, ridden and weakened over 1f out
dwelt, towards rear, headway over 3f out, ridden to lead inside final furlong, comfortably
soon led, headed over 5f out, weakened 4f out, soon tailed off
The post race auction will probably be a non-event but on the racecourse, SHANNERSBURG is selected in preference to Strikemaster and Lava Lamp. He was well backed last time out on his debut for Ian Williams over hurdles and whilst the obvious comment about chasing losses applies, If he cannot win under the in-form Paul Hanagan, his options look to be severely limited. Strikemaster stays two miles with no issues. The drop in grade looks a smart move on balance. Dale Swift's 7lb claim makes him worthy of closer examination. Lava Lamp has yet to recapture the form he showed as a juvenile for Mark Johnston but he does have the positive of being in receipt of lumps of weight. Napoletano should not be confused with the former Simon Dow horse of the same name. Magneto and Lady Norlela were both beaten out of sight on their latest starts. Shannersburg is a token call in a race lacking quality.
Napoletano (ITY) 100-1 (8-11) Held up mid-division, lost place 3f out, 10th of 13, 46l behind Pattern Mark (8-6) at Newcastle 1m 2f hcp (6) gf in Jun.
Shannersburg (IRE) 7-1 (9-5) Always behind, last of 9, 11l behind Gargano (9-4) at Lingfield 1m 4f hacp 0-70 (5) pol in Jan.
Strikemaster (IRE) 13-8fav (9-3) Slowly into stride, pushed along towards rear, headway over 6f out, ridden over 2f out, kept on one pace, 3rd of 10, 8l behind Jeu De Roseau (8-7) at Newcastle 2m hcp 0-65 (6) gf in Jun.
Lady Norlela 18-1 (7-12) Led, headed over 2f out, weakened well over 1f out, 11th of 12, 20l behind Daytime Dreamer (9-10) at Catterick 1m 4f app hcp (6) gs in Jul.
Lava Lamp (GER) 22-1 (9-7) Dwelt, in rear, ridden over 3f out, headway and hung right 1f out, kept on one pace, 4th of 9, 4 1/2l behind Escape Artist (8-7) at Beverley 2m 3yo mdn hcp 0-65 (6) gf in Jul.
Magneto (IRE) 33-1 (9-0) Chased leading trio, pushed along halfway, weakened over 2f out, last of 8, 26l behind Sheila Toss (9-7) at Folkestone 7f 3yo hcp 0-65 (6) gf in Jul.