raced wide, tracked leaders, ridden and weakened 3f out
held up, wide and headway 2f out, ridden and kept on same pace final furlong
in rear, ridden 3f out, headway over 1f out, no extra final furlong
in touch, ridden 2f out, weakened final furlong
led, ridden 2f out, headed inside final furlong, rallied to lead again near finish
tracked winner until ridden 2f out, weakened final furlong
held up in touch, ridden to chase winner 2f out, kept on same pace final furlong
held up in rear, ran very wide into straight 2f out, rapid headway over 1f out, ridden to lead inside final furlong, headed near finish
A tricky enough race here with plenty of course and distance winning form on offer and MISTER GREEN is taken to defy a 6lb penalty to take the race, in the process confirming superiority over December Draw, while Thunderstruck won't be easy to beat. Jeremy Glover's five-year-old is also penalised for a Wolverhampton win last time, but is in consistently good form and stays 10f, so there are possibilities. However, he does have it to prove around this very different track and we will take him on. December Draw was officially two lengths adrift of the selection when the pair met over course and distance last week, but did not give the impression that being 6lbs better off would see him reverse those placings, and while he can show up well he might just come up short. Evident Pride goes well here with wins over this trip and 1m 4f, and if able to reproduce the latter effort from 12 months ago, would be a major player. However, he looks in the grip of the assessor at present. The latter comment applies to Can Can Star, who may be capable of making the frame nonetheless, while Suzi Spends is another who could go close if at her best. Even so, Mister Green is capable of further improvement at this trip and his unexposed profile earns him the vote.
Valmari (IRE) 8-1 (9-9) Held up, pushed along halfway, outpaced over 2f out, kept on inside final furlong, 5th of 7, 3l behind Anice Stellato (9-2) at Newmarket 1m 4f flls hcp 0-95 (3) gf in Sep.
Can Can Star 10-3 (9-3) Chased leaders, pushed along and outpaced well over 2f out, headway over 1f out, stayed on to chase winner final furlong, kept on under pressure, 2nd of 6, 1l behind Inheritor (9-1) at Wolverhampton 1m 1f hcp 0-85 (4) pol in Dec.
Evident Pride (USA) 8-1 (9-5) Slowly into stride, held up towards rear, headway over 2f out, no extra final furlong, 4th of 13, 6l behind Tripitaka (9-3) at Kempton 1m 4f hcp 0-85 (4) pol.
War of The Roses (IRE) 18-1 (9-4) Held up, never dangerous, 8th of 13, 11l behind Tripitaka (9-3) at Kempton 1m 4f hcp 0-85 (4) pol.
Thunderstruck 9-4fav (9-5) Always prominent, led over 3f out, hard ridden and strongly challenged from over 1f out, held on gamely, won at Wolverhampton 1m 1f hcp 0-75 (5) pol beating Chosen Forever (9-2) by nk, 12 ran.
Suzi Spends (IRE) 9-1 (9-0) Tracked leaders, clipped heels after 2f, weakened 3f out, 10th of 13, 10l behind Mister Green (8-7) at Lingfield 1m 2f hcp 0-85 (4) pol.
Free Tussy (ARG) 9-2 (9-2) Held up mid-division, headway over 1f out, stayed on well, never nearer, 5th of 13, 7l behind Tripitaka (9-3) at Kempton 1m 4f hcp 0-85 (4) pol.
Mister Green (FR) 8-1 (8-7) Tracked leaders, led over 1f out, ran on well, won at Lingfield 1m 2f hcp 0-85 (4) pol beating December Draw (8-13) by 2l, 13 ran.
December Draw (IRE) 16-1 (8-13) Led, keen hold, headed after 2f, hard ridden to challenge 2f out, kept on, 2nd of 13, 2l behind Mister Green (8-7) at Lingfield 1m 2f hcp 0-85 (4) pol.
