held up in last pair, headway on inside over 3f out, soon tracking leaders, no extra final furlong
tracked leaders, weakened over 1f out
tracked leader, led over 2f out until 2f out, lost 2nd soon after, no extra in 4th inside final 150 yards
held up towards rear, headway on inside tracking leaders over 3f out, soon pushed along and weakened inside final 2f
led and set good pace, took field towards centre in straight, pushed along and headed over 2f out, weakened quickly, behind and eased
tracked leaders, hung left and went 2nd inside final 2f, ridden and no impression over 1f out, no chance with winner but kept on for clear 2nd
always behind
mid-division, smooth headway tracking leaders over 3f out, led 2f out, clear when ridden over 1f out, stayed on strongly
tracked leaders in 5th, plugged on 3rd inside final 150 yards, no impression
NonRunner
Mackaar is an interesting runner on his first outing since being gelded. He is only a couple of pounds higher than when second over course and distance a year ago and ended up in Listed company last summer. Sleeping Lion won the valuable Mallard Handicap at Doncaster in September and appears to hold Genetics on that run but he may find this trip on the short side nowadays. Laafy may need to drop a few pounds before picking up the winning thread again but he can’t be ignored and Elgin is a smart hurdler accustomed to carrying big weights. RAJINSKY (NAP) won two of his three starts in 2019 and may still be improving. His options have increased after he proved his stamina at Wolverhampton in December.
Elgin 6-1 (11-2) Always last, not fluent 3rd, jumped slowly and left behind 3 out, tailed off and pulled up before next, at Kempton 2m (1) gs in Feb.
Island Brave (IRE) 6-1 (9-12) Held up in 4th, effort on outside over 1f out, ridden and one pace in 3rd final furlong, 3rd of 5, 3 1/2l behind Clap Your Hands (8-13) at Wolverhampton 2m 1f hcp (2) pol in Feb.
Away He Goes (IRE) 11-8fav (9-8) Tracked leader, ridden over 1f out, led inside final furlong, driven out, won at Newmarket 1m 4f stks (3) gf in Jul beating Adonijah (9-2) by 1/2l, 5 ran.
Mackaar (IRE) 16-1 (8-7) Held up, ridden over 3f out, soon struggling, 4th of 6, 14l behind Vivid Diamond (8-2) at Chester 1m 6f lst stks (1) gd in Aug.
Sleeping Lion (USA) 4-1 (9-3) Slowly into stride, held up in rear, pushed along and headway over 2f out, ridden to lead 1f out, driven out, won at Doncaster 1m 7f hcp (2) gf in Sep beating Charles Kingsley (9-11) by 3/4l, 6 ran.
Genetics (FR) 9-1 (9-4) Led, pushed along and headed just over 2f out, ridden and weakened over 1f out, last of 6, 9 1/2l behind Sleeping Lion (9-3) at Doncaster 1m 7f hcp (2) gf in Sep.
Future Investment 7-1 (8-12) Chased leaders on inside, every chance over 2f out, weakened inside final furlong, 4th of 17, 6 1/4l behind Hamish (9-7) at York 1m 6f hcp (2) sft in Oct.
Busy Street 14-1 (9-10) Held up towards rear, ridden inside final 2f, never a threat, 8th of 11, 8 3/4l behind All Yours (9-7) at Kempton 2m hcp (3) pol in Feb.
Laafy (USA) 2-1fav (9-4) Tracked leaders, led 4f out, ridden and headed approaching final furlong, soon weakened, 6th of 11, 5 3/4l behind Landa Beach (8-10) at Ascot 2m hcp (3) sft in Oct.
Rajinsky (IRE) Evensfav (9-7) Tracked leaders, challenged 2f out, soon led, stayed on well, won at Wolverhampton 1m 6f hcp (4) pol in Dec beating Battle Of Marathon (9-7) by 1/2l, 8 ran.
Nette Rousse (GER) 9-4 (8-8) Held up, ridden over 2f out, went 3rd over 1f out, no chance with winner, lost 3rd and weakened inside final furlong, 5th of 6, 27l behind Monica Sheriff (8-10) at Goodwood 1m 6f hcp fll (2) hvy in Sep.
