led, ridden and headed 2f out, kept on from last
tracked leaders, ridden to lead 2f out, kept on under pressure from last
held up mid-division, pushed along and lost place 5f
held up, ridden 3f out, soon weakened
held up mid-division, ridden after 3f out, kept on from next
always behind
tracked leaders, reminders and outpaced approaching 4f, stayed on from 2f out
tracked leaders, ridden and weakened after 3f out
Nonrunner
Nonrunner
Nonrunner
Zonergem may have found the testing conditions against him on his return at Stratford last month and the Lady Herries-trained gelding looks worth another chance in this company, with the main threats looking to be Xellance and Qabas. The last mentioned is probably better than he showed when pulled up at Stratford last time and Peter Bowen's horses are always of interest when Tony McCoy rides. Richard Lee's Borora lost no caste in defeat in a competitive heat at Aintree last time ands has to be respected on that evidence along with Richard Guest's lightly raced Diamond Cutter. Steve Gollings has his string in good form at present so the eight-year-old Castleshane cannot be discounted, while Resplendent Star is unexposed over hurdles and has to be respected. Another eight-year-old Xellance has slipped to an attractive mark and is more than capable of playing a part in the finish, if putting his best foot forward, but the vote goes to Zonergem, who is relatively lightly raced over hurdles and should appreciate today's faster ground.
Borora 13-2 (11-12) Held up, headway 6th, ridden and every chance 2 out, weakened last, 3rd of 10, 10l behind Border Tale (10-1) at Aintree 2m hcp hdl 0-135 (C) gd in May.
Castleshane (IRE) 6-1 (11-11) Held up and keen, headway 6th, led after 8th, headed 3 out, weakened 2 out, 6th of 10, 20l behind Kristoffersen (10-8) at Aintree 2m 4f hcp hdl 0-125 (D) gd.
Xellance (IRE) 11-1 (10-12) Chased leaders, ridden and weakened approaching 2 out, 6th of 15, 13l behind Darrias (10-10) at Stratford 2m hcp hdl 0-135 (C) gd in May.
Ballykettrail (IRE) 12-1 (10-13) Held up behind, ridden and some headway 3 out, no impression after, 5th of 8, 15l behind Chivite (11-4) at N Abbot 2m 3f hcp hdl 0-130 (C) gd in May '04.
Resplendent Star (IRE) 7-2 (11-7) Held up towards rear, headway 5th, weakened after 2 out, 5th of 15, 10l behind Three Ships (10-11) at Market Rasen 2m 1f nov hdl (E) gf.
Zonergem 4-1fav (11-3) Ridden 3 out, always behind, 14th of 15, 38l behind Darrias (10-10) at Stratford 2m hcp hdl 0-135 (C) gd in May.
Border Tale 13-2 (11-3) Towards rear, reminders and ridden approaching 3rd, weakened and pulled up 2 out in race won by Farne Isle (10-3) at Perth 2m hcp hdl 0-120 (D) hvy, 8 ran.
Diamond Cutter (NZ) 7-1 (11-7) Chased leaders, ridden approaching 2 out, one pace after, 3rd of 15, 5l behind Three Ships (10-11) at Market Rasen 2m 1f nov hdl (E) gf.
