held up in touch, headway and virtually upsides on outside 4 out, went 2nd next, switched inside before 2 out, shaken up to lead last, ridden out flat (4 fences in back straight omitted)
tracked leader, led 3rd, joined 4 out, soon headed, no impression 2 out, weakened last
chased leaders, dropped to rear after 3rd, lost touch halfway, tailed off
tracked leaders, went 2nd and challenged on inside before 4 out, ridden and one pace next, stayed on to take 2nd post, no impression with winner
led, mistake and headed 3rd, tracked leader, lost place when outpaced briefly before 4 out, regained lead soon after, ridden 2 out, headed when pecked last, no extra flat, lost 2nd post
Whispering Harry was quite impressive this month at Chepstow when jumping well to score on just his second start over fences and he should have more to offer in this sphere. He had Lord Protector, backed into favouritism that day, well beaten and should confirm the form though the latter is almost certainly better than that low-key effort. Tornado in Milan has been hit and miss over fences to date but Headley's Court displayed greatly improved form when turned to chasing, winning twice with some aplomb before finishing a really good third in a Class 2 chase at the Scottish National meeting at Ayr. He'll prove tough to beat if ready for his first run since April but UPEPITO, returning from a similar break is narrowly preferred. He's yet to reproduce the best of his French form in two runs for Venetia Williams but showed promise on both occasions and looks the sort to definitely make his mark with another summer on his back.
Headly's Bridge (IRE) 6-1 (10-11) Mid-division, headway 7th, went close 2nd 4 out, 3 lengths down 2 out, lost 2nd last, stayed on same pace, 3rd of 9, 2 3/4l behind Scotch Warrior (10-8) at Ayr 2m 4f hcp chs (2) gs in Apr.
Upepito (FR) 4-1 (10-7) 2nd of 8, 3l behind Tornade Precieuse (10-12) at Auteuil(FR) 2m 2f chs gd in Apr.
Tornado In Milan (IRE) 16-1 (11-3) Tracked leaders, weakened quickly before 4 out, tailed off, 9th of 11, well behind Exitas (11-2) at Sandown 2m hcp hdl 0-130 (3) sft.
Lord Protector (IRE) 11-4fav (11-8) Held up in touch, outpaced after 6 out, soon lost place, 7th of 8, 30l behind Whispering Harry (10-5) at Chepstow 2m nov hcp chs 0-125 (3) sft.
Whispering Harry 14-1 (10-5) Made all, ridden before last, kept on, driven out, won at Chepstow 2m nov hcp chs 0-125 (3) sft beating Jumps Road (11-7) by 2l, 8 ran.
