held up, switched left and headway 2f out, soon ridden, no impression final furlong
slowly into stride, behind, stayed on final furlong, never on terms
chased leaders, ridden 2f out, weakened final furlong
held up, headway over 1f out, soon ridden, kept on
prominent and keen, ridden and weakened 1f out
soon prominent, weakened over 1f out
held up in touch, ridden to lead 1f out, kept on well
held up in touch, ridden over 1f out, kept on
prominent, led over 2f out, ridden and headed 1f out, no extra inside final furlong
held up, headway 3f out, soon ridden, every chance 1f out, kept on same pace
tracked leaders and keen, ridden over 1f out, one pace
soon led, headed 3f out, ridden and weakened over 1f out
Goodwood is one of those tracks where the draw usually plays a huge part in the outcome of races like this and the far-side has traditionally held sway over the stands-rail runners. However, when there is pace all the way along the stalls, the bias is nowhere near as significant. Therefore it may be worth forgiving Strathsclyde his dismal effort at Sandown last time and allow him a chance to redeem himself here. The in-form Marsad, Nivernais and Texas Gold head the short list against him. Strathsclyde travels well in his races and is a well balanced horse, who should not be inconvenienced by the course today. He has a good turn of foot on his day and will be very hard to beat if he can be delivered late by Pat Dobbs. The betting ring is likely to see plenty of action for this one and Marsad will no doubt be a popular choice after chasing home Fayr Jag at York earlier in the month. But he does win as often as he should and has been the subject of too many hard luck stories to be a confident selection. Texas Gold will find this a much tougher assignment than when he won a modest handicap at Bath a fortnight ago, but he does hold the frustrating CD Flyer on that running. Fantasy Believer is another that is capable of getting involved if he puts it all in today but as that cannot be guaranteed, Strathsclyde's course form makes him the safest option if an each way price can be obtained.