held up towards rear, good headway over 2f out, led briefly well over 1f out, soon ridden, no chance with winner inside final furlong
mid-division, headway and not clear run on rails from 3f out, snatched up 2f out, no chance when short of room again inside final furlong, never able to mount a challenge
mid-division, headway 4f out, ridden over 2f out, weakened final furlong
in touch, ridden over 3f out, soon beaten
soon pushed along to chase leaders, ridden over 3f out, weakening when hampered 2f out
held up behind, headway 3f out, close up and not clear run well over 1f out, stayed on inside final furlong
prominent, ridden over 3f out, weakened over 1f out
led until 2f out, soon weakened and eased
in touch, outpaced and short of room 3f out, kept on same pace final 2f, never troubled leaders
held up behind, good headway 2f out, to lead over 1f out, soon idled and hung right, comfortably
held up towards rear, headway into mid-division over 4f out, ridden and not clear run 3f out and 2f out, stayed on to go 3rd entering final furlong
tracked leaders, ridden 4f out, soon weakened
A fair opener and Munsef can regain the winning thread at the expense of Imperial Star and Purple Moon. The selection has been slightly disappointing of late but handles fast ground well and does know how to win around here. There can be few excuses at this level. Imperial Star ran well in the Letherby & Christopher Stakes and is worth a chance over this trip. The market should tell us all we need to know. Purple Moon missed an engagement at the weekend to come here. His hurdling career never took off but it would be folly to underestimate him as a consequence. Hard Top has been campaigned in Group 3 company and has struggled. This represents an easier assignment. The Last Drop has failed to build upon a delightful second in the St Leger while Perfectperformance, the half-brother to Russian Rhythm, attempts to add further power to the resurgent Godolphin outfit. Dragon Dancer makes a belated seasonal reappearance in an attempt to shake off that irritating tag of "best maiden in training". Stotsfold would have made more appeal had his yard been in form. Munsef has all the ticks in the right boxes and should be up to winning this.
Imperial Star (IRE) 10-1 (9-1) Held up last and off the pace, switched out and steady headway from 2f out, chased leaders final furlong, stayed on, 3rd of 7, 1l behind Illustrious Blue (8-12) at Goodwood 1m 2f lst stk (1) gd in May.
Acropolis (IRE) 33-1 (8-13) Mid-division, ridden over 3f out, weakened well over 1f out, 11th of 14, 21l behind Pevensey (8-10) at Ascot 1m 4f hcp 0-105 (2) gs in Jun.
Ballinteni 7-1 (9-0) With winner, ridden to lead narrowly 1f out, hard pressed inside final furlong, headed final strides, 2nd of 8, hd behind Mariotto (9-1) at Sandown 1m 2f hcp 0-100 (2) sft in Jul.
Camrose 16-1 (9-1) Held up behind leaders, ridden along over 4f out, lost place over 2f out, virtually pulled up, last of 7, well behind Ivy Creek (9-4) at Pontefract 1m 4f lst stk (1) gs in Jun.
Dragon Dancer 4-1fav (8-10) Held up in rear, driven along 4f out, soon weakened, 6th of 11, 21l behind Short Skirt (8-10) at Newbury 1m 4f Grp 3 (1) hvy in Oct.
Hard Top (IRE) 2-1 (9-1) Raced keenly in touch, joined leader 7f out, led over 5f out, ridden and headed 2f out, weakened final furlong, 5th of 6, 7l behind Classic Punch (9-11) at Newmarket 1m 4f stk (3) gd in Jul.
Hotel du Cap (8-11) Raced in 3rd, pushed along and led entering straight, headed over 1f out, no extra close home, 6th of 9, 8l behind Morna (8-8) at Deauville 1m 4f stk sft in Oct.
Munsef Evensfav (9-0) Led 2f, remained prominent, driven to challenge over 2f out, soon every chance, kept on same pace final furlong, 3rd of 7, 4l behind Classic Punch (9-0) at Newmarket 1m 4f lst stk (1) sft in Jun.
Perfectperformance (USA) 4-5fav (9-0) Led for 1f, chased leaders, led over 2f out, driven out, won at Nottingham 1m 2f stk (3) sft in Jul beating Tucker (9-0) by 1/2l, 4 ran.
Purple Moon (IRE) 10-1 (8-8) Towards rear, headway over 2f out, switched right over 1f out, stayed on final furlong, 4th of 12, 2 1/2l behind Championship Point (9-2) at Ascot 1m 2f lst hcp (1) gs in Jun.
Stotsfold 11-2 (9-10) Steadied towards rear, ridden in centre over 2f out, soon beaten, 11th of 12, 16l behind Lake Poet (9-5) at Epsom 1m 2f hcap (2) gs in Jun.
The Last Drop (IRE) 66-1 (9-0) Tracked leader to 7f out, remained in 3rd, 3rd and under pressure early straight, weakened 2f out, 11th of 14, 29l behind Yeats (9-2) at Ascot 2m 4f Grp 1 (1) gf in Jun.
