held up, headway 5f out, ridden to dispute 2nd over 2f out, weakened over 1f out
held up, headway 7f out, ridden 3f out, led over 1f out, stayed on well, ridden out
mid-division, headway over 4f out, ridden to dispute 2nd over 2f out, kept on same pace
chased leaders until lost place 6f out, ridden and headway over 3f out, stayed on to go 2nd near finish, no chance with winner
mid-division, ridden over 3f out, kept on same pace
chased leaders unitl 4f out, one pace after
led, soon clear, ridden and headed over 1f out, no extra and hung left inside final furlong
chased clear leader until over 3f out, weakened over 2f out
Mad Max, The Old Pretender and The Nightingale put their big reputations on the line; we'll nail our colours to The Old Pretender's mast. The giant Mad Max was well supported to make a winning debut here and duly obliged but he was hardpressed to do so. Given his size, there's every chance that he'll improve considerably for the outing and the form looks very strong with The Big Orse finishing back in fourth. The Nightingale never came off the bit when taking the bumper at Wincanton on Boxing Day. The form may not be the strongest but he couldn't have won any more impressively and he's reported to be one of the best prospects in his yard. The Old Pretender is from a good jumping family and made light of heavy ground to pulverise the opposition at Huntingdon. Again, it's hard to know quite what to make of the form but he was visually impressive and is the shortest of the English challengers in the ante-post book for the Cheltenham bumper. We'll know more after today but we'll take The Old Pretender to live up to his billing.
Fassaroe 4-1 (11-5) Mid-division, headway 5f out, chased leaders over 3f out, shaken up to lead over 2f out, soon clear, easily, won at Exeter 2m 1f mdn nhf (5) sft in Jan beating Weird Al (11-5) by 10l, 16 ran.
Mad Max (IRE) 15-8 (11-4) Tracked leaders, led well over 1f out, ran on well, ridden out, won at Newbury 2m nhf (6) sft in Jan beating Captain Oscar (11-4) by 1l, 14 ran.
Midnight Sail 3-1fav (11-9) Held up, pushed along 5f out, headway on each side over 3f out, went 4th over 2f out, never nearer, 4th of 12, 14l behind Voice of Reason (11-9) at Warwick 2m nhf lst (1) hvy in Jan.
The Nightingale (FR) 11-8fav (10-13) Held up in touch, headway on bit 4f out, shaken up to lead over 2f out, quickened clear final furlong, won at Wincanton 2m nhf (5) sft in Dec beating Finney (11-2) by 8l, 14 ran.
The Old Pretender (IRE) 9-2 (11-0) Held up in touch, joined leaders halfway, led over 3f out, drew clear final 2f, impressive, won at Huntingdon 2m nhf (5) hvy in Jan beating Into The Wild (11-0) by 18l, 11 ran.
Latalanta (FR) 25-1 (11-4) Held up last, headway on bit 4f out, shaken up final furlong, kept on, 3rd of 16, 3l behind Aboukir Bay (10-7) at Fontwell 1m 6f nhf (6) sft in Jan.
Lavender Track (IRE) 12-1 (11-5) In touch, led over 3f out, edged right final furlong, ridden out, won at Ludlow 2m mrs nhf (4) gs in Dec beating Argento Luna (11-5) by 1 1/2l, 16 ran.
Simply Blue 20-1 (10-7) Prominent, led halfway, headed over 2f out, kept on one pace, 5th of 16, 18l behind Fassaroe (11-5) at Exeter 2m 1f mdn nhf (5) sft in Jan.
Whisky Magic (FR) Maresca Sorrento gelding, half-brother to three winners on the flat and over jumps in France.
