held up rear, headway 7th, soon ridden, weakened approaching 2 out
led, headed 7th, ridden approaching 3 out, rallied well flat, led close home
chased leaders, bumped 3rd, behind 5th, tailed off
tracked winner, led 7th, ridden approaching 3 out, no extra when headed close home
held up rear, headway 3rd, not fluent 4th and 5th, soon ridden, kept on same pace
tracked leaders, went right 3rd, ridden after 7th, weakening when mistake 3 out
There has been a long-held suspicion that Desert Air is much better than he has consented to show on the track to date and he has the ideal chance to prove it today. Wizard of Edge and Code Sign look to be the two largest obstacles in his way this afternoon. The latter showed no ill-effects from a heavy fall earlier in the season when he went close here at the end of last month. The slight step up in trip should not be a problem for him and he can go close again today. Wizard Of Edge, as a previous course and distance winner, obviously also has to be respected. He has won a third of his previous starts over hurdles and will no doubt exploit any weaknesses in his opposition this afternoon. However, it is worth bearing in mind that Martin Pipe once considered Desert air to be just short of top-class and had him entered in several high-profile races. Things obviously did not go his way last season and his sights have now been lowered to more realistic levels. So the fact that he drops down into this grade for only the third time can prove to be a lucky omen for Desert Air, who can finally start to pay his way again after this.
