held up, in rear, not fluent 6th, behind 12th, tailed off
held up, towards rear, headway 8th, led 13th until 14th, every chance 4 out, no impression from next, weakened last
soon in touch, hit 6th, reminder after 11th, ridden approaching 4 out, weakened before 2 out
held up, in rear, behind 12th, never dangerous
mid-division, lost place 8th, not fluent 13th, tailed off next
led until 13th, weakened after next, soon behind
chased leader until 10th, every chance 4 out, ridden 3 out, stayed on well towards finish
chased leaders on inside, went prominent 9th, led 14th, ridden and edged left approaching last, edged left flat, stayed on
tracked leaders, raced keenly, went prominet 11th, ridden approaching 4 out, weakened 2 out
Support for Marcus would be of obvious interest but a safer conveyance for our funds may be BACK EXIT who's preferred to Rate Of Knots and Starburst Diamond. In truth, there's a fair bit that has to be taken on trust vis-a-vis the selection as this is his chase debut but it's interesting to see him pitched into handicap company and he showed enough in novice hurdles and when chasing home Door Boy in a point in Ireland to think that he can be competitive from his initial mark. Rate Of Knots should certainly be competitive from this mark but that relies on her recapturing her best form which there has been little indication of of late. Starburst Diamond has run his best races for Jack Doyle, is well handicapped on his hurdles form and his first realistic chance over fences coincides with the fitting of blinkers; it would be no surprise to see him backed. Marcus should go well if retaining his ability, the relatively consistent Gaora Lane should be involved whilst Mokum won the last running of this race and Plum Pudding comes here in great form. Neither Bubble Boy, Even Flo nor Cousin Nicky can be ruled out either but Back Exit is taken to find the requisite improvement for jumping a fence.
Rate of Knots (IRE) 3-1 (11-10) Held up, mistake 2nd, blundered 14th, chased leaders 3 out, weakened from next, 5th of 10, 21l behind I'moncloudnine (11-10) at Huntingdon 3m hcp chs 0-125 (3) sft in Jan.
Marcus 4-1 (11-0) Held up, headway 10th, ridden after 13th, soon weakened, behind when fell last, in a race won by Karanja (11-0) at Taunton 2m 7f beg chase (4) sft in Feb '08, 13 ran.
Starburst Diamond (IRE) 18-1 (10-12) Tracked winner to 4 out, outpaced next, soon beaten, 4th of 5, 21l behind Mighty Man (11-4) at Huntingdon 3m nov stks (3) sft in Jan.
Mokum (FR) 9-1 (11-10) Held up mid-division, headway 10th, every chance 2 out, soon switched left, stayed on flat, 2nd of 12, 1/2l behind Busy Isit (11-4) at Leicester 2m 4f hcp chs 0-120 (3) gs in Dec '08.
Back Exit (IRE) 7-1 (11-0) Held up in mid-division, weakened approaching 4 out, soon tailed off, 6th of 10, well behind Adams Island (11-0) at Newbury 3m mdn hdl (4) sft in Jan.
Bubble Boy (IRE) 12-1 (11-8) Led, headed 8th, under pressure 10th, soon tailed off, pulled up 5 out, in a race won by Zanzibar Boy (10-12) at Fakenham 3m hcp chs 0-120 (3) sft in Jan, 6 ran.
Cousin Nicky 11-1 (11-5) Chased leaders, led 6th to next, chased leaders until weakened 13th, tailed off when pulled up approaching 3 out, in a race won by Ballyfoy (11-12) at Lingfield 3m hcp chs 0-130 (3) hvy in Jan, 10 ran.
Plum Pudding (FR) 8-1 (11-10) Led to 3rd, pressed leader, led 10th to 12th, gaining control last, stayed on well, won at Leicester 2m 7f hcp chs 0-100 (4) gs in Jan beating Early Wings (10-11) by 8l, 13 ran.
Even Flo 15-2 (11-3) Held up in rear, headway approaching 4 out, stayed on same pace from 2 out, 5th of 9, 6l behind Free World (11-12) at Leicester 2m 7f hcp chs 0-115 (4) gf in Nov.
Gaora Lane (IRE) 6-1 (11-7) Made most until narrowly headed 5 out, 3 lengths 2nd and looking held when left in lead 3 out, joined 2 out, kept on gamely from last, led last strides, 2nd of 9, hd behind Too Forward (11-5) at Wincanton 2m 5f hcp chs 0-125 (3) hvy in Jan.
