dwelt mid-division, headway and went 2nd over 1f out, kept on
held up, ridden over 3f out, soon one pace
held up, keen on the outside, effort 3 out, soon behind
dwelt, soon chasing leaders, hung left and lost place final 2f
mid-division, effort 3f out, weakened final furlong
mid-division, effort 3f out, never on terms after
made all, ridden clear 1f out, readily
mid-division, never on terms
tracked leaders, headway over 2f out, kept on same pace
mid-division, effort over 2f out, one pace after
tracked leaders and keen, weakened over 2f out, soon behind
in rear, never on terms
Yamal can defy a 6lb penalty and land this for the Mark Johnston yard. A snug winner at Thirsk last week, prominent tactics appeared to be the key here as he was committed quite a long way out and galloped on strongly to beat the subsequently unlucky Esoterica, who was strongly backed to land an Ayr handicap on Friday evening. Young Gladiator gave the impression that a step up in trip would not inconvenience him at Yarmouth last time, on what was his turf debut. Shanafarahan is one that could go well at bigger prices. He displayed promise in decent maidens last season but has not had the rub-of-the-green in two handicap outings this season. Taking into account his promise of last season, a mark of 67 can well be exploited by the Tate yard while Lady Benjamin has slipped down the ratings and warrants respect. Yamal is the selection to land the finale.
Yamal (IRE) 9-2 (9-3) Tracked leaders, led over 2f out, ridden out final furlong, won at Thirsk 7f hcp 0-75 (5) frm beating Esoterica (9-7) by 1 1/2l, 11 ran.
Irving Place 33-1 (8-9) Held up, ridden well over 1f out, never dangerous, 7th of 12, 8l behind Novellen Lad (8-8) at Haydock 6f 3yo hcp (3) gf.
Baronovici (IRE) 33-1 (8-7) Chased leaders, ridden 2f out, weakened 1f out, 12th of 16, 10l behind Harbour Blues (9-0) at Haydock 6f 3yo hcp (4) gd in May.
Shanafarahan (IRE) 14-1 (8-10) Took keen hold, held up in rear, hampered over 4f out, never dangerous, 8th of 12, 14l behind Marning Star (9-4) at Haydock 1m 3yo hcp (4) gd.
La Fortalesa (IRE) 28-1 (9-2) Led, headed after 1f and remained in touch, ridden along over 3f out, weakened approaching final furlong, 6th of 11, 11l behind San Jose City (9-2) at Thirsk 7f mdn stk (5) gs.
Lady Benjamin 25-1 (8-1) Towards rear, ridden along 3f out, some late headway, never reached challenging position, 6th of 14, 8l behind Lindoro (9-7) at Thirsk 7f 3yo hcp (4) gs.
Borasco (USA) 16-1 (9-1) Prominent, ridden over 2f out, weakened final furlong, 10th of 16, 10l behind Kiwi Bay (9-7) at Redcar 7f 3yo hcp (5) gf.
Bertie Vista 8-1 (9-3) Chased leaders, outpaced 2f out, 6th of 10, 9l behind Everything (8-9) at Ripon 6f 3yo mdn (5) gd.
Young Gladiator (IRE) 7-1 (9-4) Led 2f, remained prominent, ridden to chase winner 2f out, one pace final furlong, 3rd of 9, 6l behind Filligree (8-10) at Yarmouth 6f 3yo hcp (6) gf.
Earlsmedic 33-1 (9-1) Led, headed over 2f out, edged left over 1f out, weakened inside final furlong, 5th of 14, 10l behind Blue Spartan (9-1) at Chepstow 1m mdn stk (5) sft in May.
Berrymead 10-1 (8-12) Mid-division, weakened entering final furlong, 8th of 12, 7l behind Legendary Guest (8-13) at Southwell 6f 3yo hcp (5) gf in Apr.
Strictly Elsie (IRE) 33-1 (9-2) Slowly away, in rear, never dangerous, 11th of 12, 29l behind Umverti (8-9) at Carlisle 7f 3yo fll hcp 0-100 (5) gf.