tracked leaders, effort over 1f out, kept on same pace final furlong
held up well off the pace, in rear, headway over 1f out, ran on, never nearer
made all, hard driven when 3 lengths clear over 1f out, ran on well, unchallenged
held up in touch, under pressure over 2f out, soon no impression
tracked winner, lost place well over 1f out
steadied start, held up well off the pace in rear, smooth headway over 2f out, chased winner inside final furlong, nearest finish
raced freely in mid-division, under pressure over 2f out, weakened over 1f out
There have been a few excuses for The Great Gatsby since he was unluckily short headed in the 2015 Prince Of Wales's Stakes at the Royal meeting but there should be none now with trip and ground ideal and he should be cherry-ripe after his fourth place in the same contest three weeks ago. At his best he'd be the one to beat but we'll give another chance to EXOSPHERE, who could not possibly have run his race when never competitive in the Hardwicke Stakes behind stable-companion Dartmouth. He'd previously scored in such sparkling style in the Jockey Club Stakes that he's afforded another chance, with nothing having come to light to explain that recent performance. Last year's winner, Big Orange, cannot be discounted and Elite Army is also noted as a lightly-raced five year-old clearly held in some esteem by Godolphin.
Exospheric 6-4fav (9-1) Held up in mid-division, pushed along over 2f out, ridden and weakened inside final 2f, 8th of 9, 18 3/4l behind Dartmouth (9-1) at Ascot 1m 4f Grp 2 stks (1) gs in Jun.
Battersea (9-0) 4th of 0, 4 1/4l behind Sheikhzayedroad (9-0) at Meydan 1m 6f Grp 3 stks (1) gf in Mar.
Big Orange 7-1 (9-1) Set strong pace, ridden 3f out, headed 2f out, kept on same pace, 3rd of 6, 9l behind Exosphere (9-0) at Newmarket 1m 4f Grp 2 stks (1) gs in Apr.
Elite Army 9-2fav (9-10) Always prominent, driven to lead over 2f out, ridden over 1f out, kept on under pressure final furlong, headed when bumped final 50 yards, no extra, 2nd of 19, 1 1/4l behind Kinema (9-4) at Ascot 1m 4f hcp stks (2) gs in Jun.
Second Step (IRE) 16-1 (9-0) Held up in 7th, pushed along and outpaced over 3f out, switched right 2f out, plugged on into modest 5th approaching final furlong, closed on 4th but never involved, 5th of 8, 7 1/2l behind Postponed (9-0) at Epsom 1m 4f Grp 1 (1) gs in Jun.
The Grey Gatsby (IRE) 10-1 (9-0) Tracked leaders, ridden 2f out, kept on one pace, 4th of 6, 4 1/2l behind My Dream Boat (9-0) at Ascot 1m 2f Grp 1 stks (1) sft in Jun.
Muntazah 16-1 (9-0) Took fierce hold, soon held up in mid-division on inside, headway over 2f out, soon not clear run and switched left over 1f out, soon not much room on inside, went 4th inside final furlong, no threat, 4th of 12, 4 1/2l behind Wings of Desire (9-0) at York 1m 2f Grp 2 stks (1) gf in May.
