slowly into stride, held up in rear, headway over 1f out, stayed on strongly inside final furlong, finished well
prominent, chased winner over 2f out until over 1f out, one pace final furlong
chased winner to over 2f out weakened quickly
made all, went clear inside final 2f, unchallenged
towards rear, shaken up over 2f out, never dangerous
dwelt, soon close up, ridden 2f out, went 2nd over 1f out, no chance with unchallenged winner
chased leaders, ridden halfway, weakened and behind final 3f
mid-division, pushed along and stayed on same pace final 2f
never reached beyond mid-division
behind, pushed along halfway, plugged on, never dangerous
mid-division, ridden 3f out, never dangerous
held up in rear, headway and well there 2f out, no impression final furlong
chased leaders, ridden 2f out, stayed on same pace
slowly into stride, pulled hard and soon in touch, driven and beaten over 2f out
behind, moderate late headway, never in contention
There are some interesting newcomers among the 18 runners including Sir Michael Stoute's Stand Guard, John Gosden's Pipedreamer and Mick Channon's Silca Elegance, any of who could be good enough to make a winning debut, but Diamond Tycoon sets a decent standard and he gets the vote. The selection lost no caste in defeat on his only start at two when chasing home Lord Sam in a Newmarket maiden in the autumn and, with improvement to come, Brian Meehan's colt looks the one they all have to beat. Henry Cecil's Walking Talking showed promise on his debut at headquarters but may want a soft surface to show his best form. Yeaman's Hall found only the useful Go On Be A Tiger too good first time out and has to be considered a bigger threat on that evidence than the Michael Jarvis-trained Black Rock. There are some potentially interesting newcomers in the field but Diamond Tycoon has plenty going for him and he is preferred.
Ascalon Galileo colt, half-brother to 1m4f-1m6f winner Zaffeu & 1m1f winner Firesong.
Black Rock (IRE) 2-1 (8-12) Chased winner, ridden 2f out, stayed on inside final furlong and closing at finish, just failed, 2nd of 9, shd behind Water Mill (8-12) at Kempton 7f 2yo stk (3) pol in Sept.
Danetime Panther (IRE) 50-1 (9-3) Towards rear and outpaced, headway over 2f out, soon ridden, weakened over 1f out, 7th of 12, 9l behind Blue Rocket (8-12) at Haydock 6f 2yo mdn (5) gf in Aug.
Diamond Tycoon (USA) 12-1 (9-3) Hampered start, held up, headway over 3f out, every chance entering final furlong, ran on, 2nd of 13, 3/4l behind Sam Lord (9-3) at Newmarket 1m 2yo mdn (4) gs in Oct.
Give Me A Break Danehill Dancer colt out of an unraced mare.
Lucarno (USA) Dynaformer colt out of winning sprinter Vignette.
Noticeable (IRE) Night Shift colt, half-brother to 7f-1m2f winner Press Express, and 7f-1m1f winner Ahmedy.
Pipedreamer Selkirk colt out of a lightly-raced mare.
Punching Kyllachy colt, closely related to 1m-1m2f winner Picador, half-brother to Italian winners Salsebond & Dancer Bond.
Shine And Rise (IRE) 15-2 (8-11) Pulled hard and steadied in rear, wide bend 5f out, hanging left and stayed on one pace final 2f, 7th of 11, 12l behind Shake On It (8-11) at Bath 1m 5f mdn stk (5) frm.
Stand Guard Danehill colt out of Listed 7f winner Protectress.
Walking Talking 15-2 (9-0) Chased winner over 2f out, ridden and every chance from over 1f out, not quicken inside final furlong, 2nd of 19, 1/2l behind Mr Napper Tandy (9-0) at Newmarket 7f 2yo mdn (5) sft in Oct.
Yaroslav (USA) Danzig colt out of the top-class Always Loyal, brother to 6f winner Loyal Love.
Yeoman Leap 40-1 (9-3) Slowly into stride, some late progress, 10th of 15, 9l behind Grey Rover (9-3) at Bath 1m 2yo mdn (5) gs in Oct.
Jawaaneb (USA) Kingmambo filly, half-sister to 6f winner Jaish.
Sweet Request 25-1 (9-0) In rear, headway over 2f out, stayed on nearest finish, 6th of 10, 7l behind Regal Quest (9-0) at Kempton 7f 2yo mdn fll (4) pol in Sept.
Silca Elegance Selkirk colt out of useful 5f winner Parisian Elegance.
Yeaman's Hall 28-1 (9-0) Prominent, ridden to lead 2f out, stayed on well, headed inside final furlong, not pace of winner, 2nd of 11, 1 1/2l behind Go On Be A Tiger (9-0) at Newbury 1m 2yo mdn (4) sft in Oct.
