led until headed 4f out, stayed in touch, one pace final 2f
pulled hard, prominent, under pressure 2f out, weakened quickly over 1f out
behind, headway wide 3f out, ridden 2f out, soon beaten
held up in mid-division, headway 2f out, stayed on one pace from over 1f out
tracked leader, led 4f out, pressed over 1f out, headed and no extra close home
held up mid-division, under pressure 2f out, weakened over 1f out
started slowly, towards rear, ridden along 4f out headway on inside 2f out, stayed on to take 3rd inside final furlong, nearest finish
steadied start, pulled hard behind, headway over 3f out, soon ridden and weakened over 2f out
in touch, chased leader 2f out, stayed on well inside final furlong to lead close home
towards rear, ridden over 3f out, never troubled leaders
towards rear, never dangerous
chased leaders, ridden 3f out, weakened 2f out
held up in touch, ridden 2f out, stayed on same pace from over 1f out
started slowly, in rear steady headway over 1f out, kept on final furlong,nearest finish
There can be no doubting that Gold Guest is at the top of his game at the moment and has to be considered in any betting plans as he is one of the least exposed in the field at this trip. However, this is a tougher task than he faced in his last two starts and he may be worth taking on with Lyrical Way, who is at the right end of the handicap to continue his own run of good form today. Others to consider include: True Companion, who is very closely matched with the selection on course and distance form from last month but will do well to overcome his wide draw. While both Blue Trojan and Ginko are capable on their day and cannot be ruled out of running into a place at least. However, Lyrical Way makes more appeal as the likeliest winner after a gutsy win here just before Christmas. It is also a good pointer that the in-form Ian Mongan has opted to partner the selection instead of some choice alternatives and, with a fair draw in stall six, Lyrical Way can be ideally placed during the race to exploit the gaps when they arrive.