held up, headway after 5th, ridden to lead 2 out, ran on
led and jumped left, mistake 5th, ridden and headed 2 out, soon weakened
held up, headway 8th, ridden and every chance last, no extra towards finish
keen hold in touch, ridden and every chance 3 out, weakened approaching last
keen hold tracking leader, lost place 6th, weakened after 8th
The Ludlow 4:15 sees Themanfromcarlisle bid to add to his impressive Fontwell success, and under the prevailing conditions, there is no reason why he cannot. Having had just the one bumper outing, Mark Pitman's charge was sent straight over fences on only his second career start, but weakened behind No Need For Alarm. His two outings over timber at Newbury prior to opening his account were against better company, and on ground not fast enough. Now that he has got his head in front, a follow-up is on the cards, with Ballyvaddy and Pure Fun the main stumbling blocks. The latter comes from a stable that does well here, and took a handicap hurdle over three miles at the Shropshire track in October. The drop back in distance will just count against him, but he should run well before eventually going chasing. Ballyvaddy has topweight to overcome after paying the penalty for successes at Wincanton and Kempton last year, and although a decent third at scot last time, still looks high enough in the weights, given his place in the market. Themanfromcarlisle is the value selection.
