held up in 7th, pushed along 3f out, soon beaten
held up in 6th, shaken up 2f out, never dangerous
slowly into stride, held up last, pushed along 3f out, no response
tracked leader, led over 1f out, stayed on final furlong, ridden out
raced in 5th, driven along halfway, weakened 3f out
held up in 4th, ridden to close on leaders on inside 3f out, chased winner on inside 1f out, stayed on under pressure to hold 2nd near finish but no chance with winner
took keen hold, tracked leaders in 3rd, hung left and not quicken over 1f out, stayed on inside final furlong to press for 2nd near finish
The selection here is Tabadul, with best of the rest given as Queen's Best and Orchard Supreme. There is no doubt that Orchard Supreme needs a career best if he is to score but he cannot be ruled out given his all-weather consistency. Ofaraby was an improver last season and he too needs a career-best effort if he is to feature but, again, is not ruled out with his stable in good form. Best Prospect is open to improvement again this season but this is his all-weather debut, while Tabadul ran a very good race at Epsom behind Blue Bajan from his new mark last time and, even though he has yet to race here, he has won at Kempton and can go well. Tufton is lightly raced and open to improvement but it will be interesting to see how he fares at today's trip, and Tiger Tiger has to be given some thought based on the fact that he is back to a winning course and distance mark of 2006. Vacation has been a little disappointing following his wins of November and December of 2006 but the well-related Sir Michael Stoute runner, Queen's Best, comes here as a lightly-raced probable improver and gets plenty of respect. The selection, though, is Tabadul.
Orchard Supreme 9-2 (8-9) Held up, short-lived effort on rails over 2f out, soon beaten, last of 8, 26l behind Capable Guest (8-7) at Sandown 1m hcp 0-100 (2) gd in Apr.
Ofaraby 12-1 (9-5) Held up towards rear, headway 2f out, weaved through inside final furlong and finished well, 3rd of 18, nk behind Folio (8-6) at Windsor 1m 2f hcp 0-100 (2) gs in Nov.
Best Prospect (IRE) 11-2fav (10-0) Slowly away, behind, ridden and headway over 2f out, one pace, 8th of 11, 5l behind Charlie Tokyo (9-2) at Pontefract 1m 2f hcp 0-100 (2) gd in Apr.
Tabadul (IRE) 7-1 (9-0) Prominent, joined leader over 3f out, ridden and every chance entering final furlong, unable to quicken near finish, 4th of 17, 3l behind Blue Bajan (9-5) at Epsom 1m 2f hcp 0-105 (2) gf in Apr.
Tufton 8-1 (8-13) Tracked leaders, one pace final furlong, 4th of 14, 2 1/2l behind Robustian (8-5) at Pontefract 1m hcp 0-95 (3) gd in Apr.
Tiger Tiger (FR) 16-1 (8-9) Tracked leader, effort over 2f out, weakened over 1f out, 6th of 12, 8l behind Watamu (8-4) at Lingfield 1m 2f hcp 0-100 (2) pol in Mar.
Vacation (IRE) 11-2 (9-2) Held up, ridden 3f out, never nearer, 5th of 8, 10l behind Future's Dream (8-13) at Southwell 1m hcp 0-90 (3) fbs in Apr.
Queen's Best 5-2jt-fav (8-4) Always towards rear, driven over 5f out, never dangerous, 11th of 12, 32l behind Army of Angels (9-9) at York 1m hcap (2) sft in Oct.
