soon chased leaders, chased winner approaching 2 out until last, soon weakened
led to 4th, raced wide and led briefly when hit 8th, pushed along in 2nd approaching next, reminders 10th, blundered 11th, soon pulled up
led from 4th, ridden last, kept on
towards rear, headway approaching 5 out, weakened 2 out, soon eased
tracked leaders, quickly weakened approaching 11th, soon pulled up
tracked leaders, ridden approaching 3 out, soon weakened
tracked leaders, ridden approaching 2 out, chased winner from last, kept on and always held
mid-division, hit 2nd, tailed off approaching 11th
in rear, never dangerous
mid-division, weakened approaching 3 out, tailed off
A competitive enough heat for the money and one where HIGH JACK is a tentative selection to defy top weight, while Bold Punt, Brimham Boy and Grand Bay all have claims. The last-named has been comfortably beaten from similar marks during the winter, but trip and ground will suit and he was in the process of running his best race for a while when unseating today's pilot Tony McCoy at Leicester in February. He acts with cut and a decent effort would be no surprise. Brimham Boy was thrashed when favourite at Hereford last time, but the drop back to this trip looks very much a positive, and he acts on soft ground. However, a 3lb rise for a 74-length defeat is hardly encouraging. Bold Punt acts with plenty of cut but was also a good ground scorer at Market Rasen last time in novices' company. He returns to handicapping from a 10lbs higher mark and given his previous tries in this sphere the portents are not good. That leads us back to High Jack. Andy Turnell's gelding won a competitive enough race over a similar trip at Kempton last time, when the front three drew well clear. A 6lb rise looks entirely reasonable, he goes on the ground, and we think that he has the strongest claim.
High Jack (IRE) 8-1 (10-5) Soon in touch, headway 8th, soon chasing leaders, led 4 out, strongly challenged after last, kept on well, won at Kempton 2m 4f hcp chs 0-115 (4) gd in Apr beating Cloud Nine (10-13) by nk, 11 ran.
Bold Punt (IRE) 3-1 (11-12) Tracked clear leader, led 6th, joined next, blundered 3 out, driven and stayed on flat, won at Market Rasen 2m 4f nov hcp chs 0-95 (5) gd in Mar beating Chicago Alley (10-10) by 2 1/4l, 6 ran.
Brimham Boy 13-8fav (10-10) Mostly raced wide of others, tracked leaders, not fluent 9th, close 3rd 4 out, weakened after next, 3rd of 4, well behind Omix D'or (10-12) at Hereford 3m 1f nov hcp chs 0-115 (4) sft in Mar.
Grand Bay (USA) 5-1fav (11-3) Held up, towards rear, jumped left 2nd, mistake and unseated rider 8th, in a race won by Cesium (11-1) at Leicester 2m 4f hcp chs 0-105 (4) gd in Feb, 15 ran.
Iphar (FR) 16-1 (11-9) Led until after 4th, weakened 4 out, refused 3 out, in a race won by Carrickmines (10-11) at Chepstow 2m nov hcp chs 0-100 (4) hvy in Nov, 7 ran.
Ouragan Lagrange (FR) 16-1 (11-4) Always behind, pushed along 6th, tailed off when pulled up 3 out, in a race won by Prince Louis (10-7) at Plumpton 2m 4f 5yo nov hcp (4) gs in Mar, 9 ran.
Noble Future 4-1fav (10-0) Towards rear, headway 11th, chased leaders 13th, left 3rd 3 out, kept on same pace from next, 4th of 16, 5l behind Petroupetrov (11-2) at Kempton 3m hcp chs 0-105 (4) gd in Apr.
Sarobar (IRE) 11-2 (10-12) Held up, blundered badly 9th, not fluent 10th, never dangerous, 7th of 11, 37l behind Hello My Lovely (11-2) at Southwell 3m hcp chs 0-95 (5) gd in Dec.
Play The Rock (FR) 12-1 (10-11) Mid-division, headway approaching 5 out, went 3rd 4 out, jumped right next 2 fences, pulled up last, in a race won by Something Silver (10-10) at Ayr 2m 5f hcp chs 0-105 (4) gs in Mar, 10 ran.
Ede's 33-1 (9-13) Chased leaders, mistake 5th, weakened before 2 out, tailed off, 6th of 14, 42l behind Corker (10-8) at Kempton 2m 5f hcp hdl 0-125 (3) gd in Apr.
Kercabellec (FR) 8-1 (9-6) Held up towards rear, headway 4 out, chased winner approaching 3 out, one pace and no chance with winner, 2nd of 8, 10l behind Maurisca (11-12) at Market Rasen 2m 4f cond hcp hdl 0-105 (4) gd in Apr.
Safe Investment (USA) 20-1 (11-9) Held up in mid-division, weakened 4 out, 5th of 9, 33l behind Lord Gunnerslake (9-11) at Huntingdon 2m hcp chs 0-90 (5) gd in Apr.
