There is not much strength-in-depth here and it may pay to employ a watching brief with those at the bottom of the weights - only Nisbet has shown enough to suggest that he can trouble the principles; but he still has it all to do from 1lb out of the handicap. Be Upstanding was a cheeky winner at Fakenham last time and is short list material as a representative of an in-form yard. However, it was a very weak race that he won and an 8lb rise may be enough to stop him on today's much firmer ground. Trooper has the ability to go close but is an enigmatic character and his relish for a battle has to be questioned, even at this level. Chevalier Bayard, on the other hand, is a consistent performer and will take some pegging back today. The drying conditions should enable him to see out the trip and he can extend his run of good efforts with a well deserved third career win.
