held up towards rear, headway over 2f out, led over 1f out, ridden and edged left inside final furlong, kept on well
tracked leader, led over 1f out, soon headed, kept on towards finish
led, headed over 1f out, soon ridden, weakened inside final furlong
held up mid-division, headway on outer over 3f out, weakened 1f out
towards rear, outpaced and lost place 3f out, soon pushed along, not much room and switched left over 1f out, switched right entering final furlong, kept on well towards finish
tracked leader, ridden over 1f out, one pace
tracked leaders, ridden over 1f out, kept on inside final furlong
towards rear, ridden 2f out, never dangerous
held up in rear, ridden over 3f out, one pace and no impression
tracked leaders, ridden over 1f out, kept on inside final furlong
This could revolve around the three winning debutants. Attenborough's presence makes it unlikely he'll be taking up his entry in the Irish 2000 Guineas but he did have three subsequent winners behind when scoring at Haydock in August. Modernism is a more recent winner having scored at Wolverhampton last month with a bit to spare, but the high-class Gitano Hernando won this for Marco Botti in 2009 on his seasonal debut and the trainer runs KINGSDESIRE today. The latter landed the odds with the minimum of fuss at Kempton in December and could well be up to winning this much tougher test on his reappearance. Montaser failed to improve on his winning start when beaten at Ayr in September but Ex Oriente made a winning comeback at Lingfield and may figure.
Kingsdesire (IRE) 2-5fav (9-1) Slowly into stride, in rear, smooth headway over 2f out, led over 1f out, pushed clear final furlong, comfortably, won at Kempton 1m 2yo mdn auc stks (6) pol in Dec beating Macy Anne (8-10) by 2l, 6 ran.
Goldoni (IRE) 16-1 (9-0) Held up in touch, headway on wide outside and hung left over 3f out, weakened 2f out, last of 7, 9l behind Caledonian Spring (9-0) at Haydock 1m Listed stks 2yo (1) gf in Sep.
Modernism 11-2 (8-7) Chased leader, led over 2f out, clear 2f out, ridden 1f out, stayed on inside final furlong, won at Wolverhampton 1m 1f mdn stks (5) pol in Mar beating Ruacana (8-7) by 1l, 13 ran.
Attenborough (USA) 7-4 (9-3) Towards rear in 6th, headway over 2f out, led over 1f out, soon ridden, stayed on, driven out, won at Haydock 1m 2yo mdn (5) gd in Aug beating Badea (9-3) by 1/2l, 8 ran.
Montaser (IRE) 11-4fav (9-5) In rear, soon switched to rail, headway 3f out, ridden 2f out, kept on to take 2nd last 100 yards, always held, 2nd of 8, 2 3/4l behind Zakreet (9-5) at Ayr 1m 2yo hcp (2) sft in Sep.
Indepub 11-1 (8-7) Dwelt, held up towards rear, ridden over 2f out, never a factor, 9th of 14, 6l behind Strictly Silver (8-7) at Doncaster 7f 2yo hcp 0-95 (3) gd in Oct.
Ex Oriente (IRE) 16-1 (9-3) Mid-division, driven and headway over 2f out, soon chasing leaders, swerved left under pressure well inside final furlong, stayed on to lead close home, won at Lingfield 1m 2f 3yo mdn stks (5) pol in Jan beating Key Gold (8-12) by 1/2l, 12 ran.
Hallmark Star 13-2 (8-13) Towards rear, headway over 1f out, went 3rd inside final furlong, stayed on, 3rd of 12, 1 3/4l behind Ocean Tempest (8-10) at Kempton 1m 2yo mdn auc stks (6) pol in Nov.
The Blue Banana (IRE) 10-1 (9-5) Slowly into stride, behind, headway stands side over 1f out, kept on inside final furlong, never nearer, 5th of 13, 4l behind Brimstone Hill (8-10) at Doncaster 1m 2yo hcp 0-85 (4) gd in Oct.
Mcvicar 8-1 (9-6) Towards rear, headway on outside over 1f out, never reached leaders and no impression inside final furlong, 6th of 10, 6l behind Tiger Cub (8-9) at Windsor 1m 2yo hcp 0-75 (5) gf in Oct.
Grand Gold 25-1 (9-7) Always in rear, pushed along over 4f out, never on terms, 6th of 8, 16l behind Quixote (8-10) at Lingfield 1m 4f 3yo hcp 0-75 (5) pol in Mar.
