held up, some headway over 2f out, soon no impression
always prominent, ridden to challenge well over 2f out, stayed on strongly inside final furlong, just failed
held up, headway over 3f out, weakened over 2f out
held up, headway after 4f, soon chasing leaders, driven to challenge over 2f out, weakened over 1f out
tracked leaders, lost place after 4f, weakened over 4f out, eased over 2f out
held up, pulled hard early, pushed along over 4f out, soon beaten
made all, ridden out, held on gamely
held up in touch, tracked leader after 3f, effort over 3f out, kept on same pace
behind, some headway over 2f out, soon no impression
always behind
keen hold, in touch, ridden over 3f out, faded well over 1f out
awkward start, always behind
Meadow Mischief looks a likely scorer here, though don't discount Chess Board, On Air and At The Money in a competitive handicap. The selection came good last time out at Southwell and looked as though this extra quarter of a mile would not inconvenience him. Although he has never won on fast ground on turf, he has run well enough on the polytrack to suggest that he should handle this and he gets the vote. On Air steps up from 10f here and although her pedigree does not initially give the impression that that's best for him, her trainer Mark Johnston clearly feels she has the stamina to ge thome, so she is respected. Chess Board is a very interesting contender from Sir Mark Prescott's yard, stepping up massively in trip and running on much quicker ground than previously. It's a fair bet that he will leave his previous form behind, so watch the market for any confidence. Of the others, At The Money should get the trip and the form of his Southwell defeat has held up, so improvement is anticipated, but we still prefer Meadow Mischief.
Meadow Mischief (FR) 5-2jt-fav (8-5) Led 1f, led again over 5f out, ridden over 1f out, stayed on well, won at Southwell 1m 4f mdn stk (5) fbs in Apr beating Deutschland (8-5) by 3 1/2l, 7 ran.
Patavium (IRE) 5-1 (9-3) Mid-division, ridden over 3f out, soon weakened, 5th of 10, 13l behind Free To Air (9-3) at Southwell 1m 3f 3yo mdn aut (6) gd in Apr.
Hoh Bla Daa 16-1 (8-12) Tracked leaders, pushed along when not clear run on rails over 2f out, stayed on once pace, 3rd of 5, 10l behind Cool Customer (8-12) at Kempton 1m 4f 3yo hcp (4) pol.
On Air (USA) 20-1 (8-13) Towards rear, pushed along over 4f out, ridden over 2f out, stayed on final furlong, 4th of 7, 2 1/2l behind Dark Planet (8-4) at Beverley 1m 2f 3yo hcp (5) gf in Apr.
Chess Board 33-1 (9-0) Always towards rear, 7th of 10, 24l behind Cote d'Argent (9-0) at Musselburgh 7f 2yo mdn aut (5) gd in Nov.
At The Money 6-1 (9-3) Chased leaders, ridden over 3f out, stayed on to take 2nd towards finish, no chance with winner, 2nd of 13, 2 1/2l behind Bollin Derek (8-9) at Southwell 1m 3f 3yo hcp (6) gd in Apr.
Wise Choice 7-1 (8-4) Held up, came wide entering straight, ridden and headway well over 1f out, not trouble leaders, 5th of 13, 5l behind Spring Dream (9-0) at Warwick 1m 5f 3yo hcp (5) gd.
Shardia (IRE) 25-1 (8-5) Chased leaders, ridden 3f out, stayed on final furlong, 3rd of 16, 2 1/2l behind Raise The Heights (9-2) at Nottingham 1m 2f 3yo hcp (6) sft in Apr.
