held up in rear, headway 2 out, never on terms
held up in rear, headway 9th, led before 3 out, soon hard ridden, headed next, rallied last, stayed on same pace
held up in rear, headway to chase leaders 5 out, ridden to challenge 3 out, weakened before last
prominent, led 10th, headed next, weakened 4 out
chased leaders, weakened 9th, soon tailed off, pulled up 4 out
led, mistake 3rd and 5th, not fluent 9th, headed next, led again before 11th, headed approaching 3 out, weakened before last
held up in touch, every chance 3 out, led next, soon hard pressed, kept on under pressure closing stages
mid-division, slow 6th, soon lost place, detatched 7th, tailed off when pulled up before 4 out
All three of Venetian Lad's wins have come on this course but he has another career-high mark to overcome here. RED MILE was well beaten on his fencing bow at Exeter recently but that was his first outing for 18 months and he did come up against some very useful performers over hurdles. Provided he's learned some lessons, Emma Lavelle's seven-year-old could be a bit of value here as the handicapper has taken a real chance giving him a mark of 104. River D'Or was a winner here in April and started favourite on his comeback at Uttoxeter. He'll strip fitter here and is preferred to the Jonjo O'Neill pair Mission Complete and It's Like That who are infrequent winners. Another course specialist, Current Climate, made steady progress in the spring but could find this an insufficient test of stamina.
Mission Complete (IRE) 5-1 (11-10) Towards rear, not fluent 1st, headway 3rd, not fluent 7th, jumped left and bumped into rival 10th, jumped left next, soon weakened, tailed off, 5th of 6, well behind Venetian Lad (9-13) at Fontwell 2m 4f hcp chs 0-120 (4) sft.
River D'or (FR) 2-1fav (11-9) Held up behind leaders, not fluent 10th, headway before next, challenging when not much room 13th, beaten 3 out, weakened next, 3rd of 6, 25l behind Beggar's Velvet (11-12) at Uttoxeter 3m nov hcp chs 0-120 (4) gd in Sep.
It's Like That (IRE) 10-1 (11-6) In but in touch, headway from 4 out, ridden before last, one pace, 3rd of 4, 14l behind Chasers Chance (10-8) at Exeter 3m hcp chs 0-115 (4) hvy.
Morestead (IRE) 20-1 (11-12) Led, headed 13th, soon weakened, 6th of 7, well behind Chasers Chance (11-5) at Wincanton 2m 5f hcp chs 0-110 (4) gs.
Wherrimon 5-2fav (11-12) Jumped well, tracked leaders, went 2nd 6th, made most from 10th, came well clear from 15th, heavily eased flat, won at Fontwell 3m 2f hcp chs 0-95 (5) sft in Oct '11 beating Captain Becket (11-0) by 49l, 6 ran.
Red Mile (FR) 13-5 (11-5) Tracked leaders, pecked 9th, pushed along before 4 out, weakened 3 out, 4th of 6, 33l behind Bennys Mist (11-5) at Exeter 3m Beginners Chase (0-110) (4yo+) (4) hvy.
Venetian Lad 7-2 (9-13) Held up in touch, hampered 10th, went 3rd after next, went 2nd before 3 out, challenged last, driven to lead flat, stayed on, won at Fontwell 2m 4f hcp chs 0-120 (4) sft beating Last Shot (10-7) by 1l, 6 ran.
Current Climate (IRE) 7-1 (10-13) Held up in last pair, good headway to 3rd at 15th, led before next, clear before 4 out, stayed on well, won at Fontwell 3m 4f hcp ch 0-110 (4) gs in Apr beating Cebonne (11-6) by 10l, 7 ran.
