close up in 4th, disputed 3rd 9th, led approaching 2 out, soon clear, ran on
led, ridden and headed approaching 2 out, stayed on to go 2nd towards finish
tracked leader, not fluent 8th, hit next and soon in rear, ridden and outpaced 3 out, rallied run in
tracked leaders, disputed 3rd 9th, ridden to chase clear winner 2 out, no extra and lost 2nd towards finish
The 11-year-old Ballyandy has only run over the trip once before and that was in 2019. Teenager Kansas City Chief has been running well in more competitive races at Cheltenham and will ensure there is a decent gallop here. He finished almost 20 lengths ahead of Havana Hermano back in October but Stuart Edmunds’ charge didn’t give his true running that day. POTTERS HEDGER (NAP) looked to be coming to hand at Haydock last month and has been dropped a further 2lb so can land this.
Ballyandy 9-2 (11-12) Pressed leader, ridden before 3 out, close up 2 out, stayed on under pressure flat but could not match winner, 2nd of 8, 2 1/4l behind Haafapiece (11-7) at Wetherby 2m 4f hcp (3) sft in Jan.
Kansas City Chief (IRE) 14-1 (10-10) Led until after 3 out, headed before 2 out, stayed on but hard pressed, headed final 50 yards, 2nd of 14, 1 1/4l behind Dolphin Square (11-6) at Cheltenham 3m hcp (2) sft in Jan.
Havana Hermano (IRE) 18-1 (10-12) Led until before 3rd where not fluent, stayed handy, hit 8th, weakened before last, 7th of 14, 19 1/4l behind Kansas City Chief (10-6) at Cheltenham 3m hcp (2) gd in Oct.
Potters Hedger 12-1 (11-1) Led, headed 4th, pushed along before 3 out, ridden next, no extra approaching last, 4th of 8, 9 1/2l behind Small Present (11-5) at Haydock 3m hcp (3) sft in Jan.
