behind, blundered 2nd, tailed off when pulled up before 10th
tracked leaders, led 5th, mistake and headed 7th, close 3rd when unseated rider 10th
held up, mistake 8th, not fluent 12th, kept on under pressure from 4 out, no danger
led to 5th, led again 7th, jumped left 3 out and next, headed last, one pace flat
held up and behind, steady headway from 9th, challenged going easily 2 out, still every chance flat, not quicken last 75 yards
in rear, jumped badly left 11th, tailed off when pulled up before 4 out
close up, led briefly 9th, every chance 2 out, weakened quickly and mistake last
in touch, mistake 6th, weakened and behind from 4 out
held up, steady headway approaching 3 out, stayed on to lead soon after last, driven out
prominent, mistake 4th, weakened quickly 4 out
held up, mistake 9th, headway from 4 out, weakened 2 out
in touch, until weakened and behind from 9th, continued, tailed off
Pontius has ability but has had his problems getting around of late. At his best he is a decent novice chaser and off this weight and on this surface he rates an interesting selection at a decent price. The four-timer seeking Kind Sir will undoubtedly have his supporters and he has done little wrong of late. However he may just have sneaked too high in the weights and others are preferred here. The lightly-raced Catchatan showed his well being when winning just before the turn of the year and could still be ahead of the handicapper. The step back up in trip may not really help matters, though he should still be capable of landing some place prize money. Umbrella Man was all out to win last time and it is unlikely he will be able to get competitive off this mark. The grey Keltic Heritage runs well fresh and has been given a nice mid-winter break. He stays well but also has speed over the shorter trip. He acts on this surface.
