chased winner, hit 3 out, ridden and soon no chance, stumbled just before 2 out, soon weakened
made all, drew well clear after 3 out, unchallenged
chased winner, hit 4th, jumped right after struggling 4 out, soon lost touch
Nonrunner
Monzon and Present Oriented have no realistic chance of winning which means this is a match between EXMOOR RANGER and Mount Sandel which we expect the former to win. Victor Dartnall has gone some time without a winner but the few horses that he's run since resuming operations have performed creditably. Exmoor Ranger's defeat of Kornati Kid at Exeter in October was given a boost when the runner up landed a Grade 2 race at Wetherby at the end of January whilst the third home, Gone To Lunch, has improved with every outing and is a leading fancy for the RSA Chase. He fell next time but won impressively back at Exeter at the start of December and should prove too strong for this opposition if at the top of his game. Mount Sandel hasn't gone on from a promising start to his career although he did run fairly well in a weak race on his penultimate start which would give him a squeak. Official ratings have the pair closely matched once penalties are taken into account but Victor Dartnall's runner has far more scope and Exmoor Ranger should take the honours.
Monzon (FR) 20-1 (9-9) Hit 1st, mainly in rear, lost touch 11th, tailed off, 7th of 10, well behind Ping Pong Sivola (10-1) at Cheltenham 2m 5f nov hcp chs (2) hvy in Jan.
Mount Sandel (IRE) 7-1 (11-0) Behind, headway into mid-division when fell at the 8th in race won by Sa Suffit (11-0) at Catterick 2m 3f beg chs (4) gs in Jan, 16 ran.
Present Oriented (USA) 25-1 (11-3) Chased leaders, lost place after 11th, tailed off when pulled up at the 13th in race won by Maori Legend (11-5) at Folkestone 3m 1f hcp chs 0-110 (4) gs in Jan, 14 ran.
Exmoor Ranger (IRE) 8-11fav (11-5) Raced wide, tracked leader, led after 7th until 10th, led after 11th, in command from 4 out, comfortably, won at Exeter 2m 3f nov chs (2) sft in Dec beating Oscar Bay (11-8) by 3 1/2l, 4 ran.