raced keenly, chased leaders, pushed along over 2f out, soon weakened
always behind, weakened over 2f out
raced keenly, chased leaders, ridden and weakened over 1f out
held up towards rear, headway under pressure over 1f out, stayed on same pace inside final furlong
raced keenly, chased leader near side of group, led inside final 2f, ridden and headed inside final furlong, stayed on
chased leaders far side of group, weakened inside final 2f
led, joined 2f out, soon ridden and headed, lost 2nd over 1f out, kept on same pace inside final furlong
held up and behind, never on terms
chased leaders, went 2nd over 1f out, ridden to lead inside final furlong, ran on well
mid-division far side of group, headway chasing leaders 2f out, ridden over 1f out, stayed on same pace inside final furlong
chased leaders on near side rail, pushed along 3f out, ridden over 1f out, weakened inside final furlong
Little Jo goes well here and was narrowly beaten over a mile last month. He has every chance with an apprentice’s allowance also helping his cause but has yet to race over this shorter trip while the returning Merchant Of Venice has done all his winning so far over a mile. Mohareb’s earlier double came over 6f but Northernpowerhouse was beaten only a short-head over track and trip back in October. Fortamour has plenty of scope but so does ASDAA, a winner in Ireland for Dermot Weld and having his first start since June when placed at Southwell on a recent debut for Mark Johnston’s yard. He gets the vote expected to improve with that outing under his belt.
Zylan (IRE) 16-1 (9-1) Held up in mid-division, headway chasing leaders 4f out, not clear run and switched right inside final 2f, weakened inside final furlong, 6th of 11, 3 1/2l behind Dubai Acclaim (9-4) at Beverley 7f hcp (5) sft in Sep.
Donncha (IRE) 8-1 (8-8) Held up towards rear, never involved, 9th of 15, 8 1/4l behind Crownthorpe (8-12) at York 1m hcp (2) sft in Oct.
Little Jo 17-2 (9-6) Slowly into stride, held up, headway over 2f out, chased leaders over 1f out, kept on under pressure, 3rd of 14, nk behind My Target (9-0) at Newcastle 1m hcp (4) pol in Nov.
Merchant Of Venice 8-1 (9-10) Behind, headway over 2f out, stayed on inside final furlong, never nearer, 7th of 12, 3 3/4l behind Dalaalaat (9-0) at Chelmsford City 1m hcp (3) pol in Jul.
Mohareb 3-1jfav (9-7) Chased leaders, took keen hold, effort over 1f out, ran on inside final furlong, 3rd of 9, 1/2l behind Fastar (8-13) at Wolverhampton 7f hcp (4) pol in Dec.
Woodside Wonder 12-1 (8-13) Pressed leader, ridden over 1f out, soon lost place, weakened inside final furlong, last of 6, 4 1/2l behind Power Link (9-6) at Wolverhampton 7f hcp (3) pol in Nov.
Asdaa (IRE) 10-1 (9-9) Chased leaders, driven over 3f out, ridden 2f out, kept on, no extra inside final 100 yards, 4th of 13, 2l behind Samovar (9-2) at Southwell 6f hcp (4) pol in Dec.
Glorious Charmer 100-1 (8-10) Steadied in rear, headway when not clear run over 1f out, no danger, 10th of 14, 5 1/4l behind Brushwork (9-2) at Newcastle 6f hcp (3) pol in Dec.
Northernpowerhouse 11-2 (9-7) In touch, ridden and headway entering final 2f, stayed on towards finish to press winner, 2nd of 14, shd behind Castle Quarter (8-11) at Newcastle 7f hcp (5) pol in Oct.
Fortamour (IRE) 10-3 (9-7) In touch in rear, ridden and headway over 1f out, kept on one pace final furlong, 3rd of 7, 2 3/4l behind Desert Caravan (9-2) at Newcastle 1m stks (5) pol in Nov.
Custard The Dragon 9-1 (9-1) Towards rear, ridden 3f out, never on terms, 6th of 9, 6 1/2l behind Suitcase 'n' Taxi (8-7) at Southwell 7f hcp (4) pol in Nov.
Captain Jameson (IRE) 11-2 (9-6) Keen tracked leaders, pushed along 3f out, kept on one pace, 5th of 10, 3 3/4l behind Typhoon Ten (9-5) at Lingfield 7f hcp (3) pol in Dec.
