held up, headway over 2f out, ridden to chase winner over 1f out, kept on same pace
tracked winner, until no extra until 1f out
tracked leaders, pushed along 3f out, ridden and weakened 2f out
The on-course bookmakers are unlikely to take any chances with Long Walk after his two near misses in defeat up to press so, as both Master Leo and Rich Chic are hard to fancy on what they have shown so far, it may be down to Mr Mistral to provide punters with a value edge as he tackles this trip for the first time. The Geoff Wragg-trained gelding was putting in all his best work on his debut when he went down by two-and-half lengths to Royal Prince, who has franked the form by winning again at Leicester earlier this month. That run should have done the son of Zilzal the power of good and he is the obvious alternative to make the likely odds-on favourite pull out the stops tonight. It is also worth bearing in mind that Long Walk was well beaten by Moon Dazzle last time and, even though that run sets the standard here, he is far from certain to be suited by the way things unfold if there is a lack of pace here. A scenario that will play straight into the hands of Mr Mistral, who should not be underestimated in his challenge to exploit any chinks in the armour of his main rival in a race that will quickly be forgotten by many.
