tracked leader, led over 2f out, ridden and headed over 1f out, weakened inside final furlong
tracked leaders, shaken up to lead over 1f out, soon clear, readily
mid-division, ridden over 3f out, soon hung right, stayed on inside final furlong
steadied start, pulled hard, always towards rear
held up, headway 3f out, ridden and stayed on steadily from 2f out, went 2nd near finish
held up, steady headway from 3f out, ridden over 1f out, stayed on
led until over 2f out, weakened 1f out
tracked leaders, ridden over 2f out, chased winner but no chance 1f out, lost 2nd near finish
towards rear, short lived effort 2f out
Not always ideal looking at official ratings in this type of contest but it is hard to avoid the claims of Yakimov, with Silver Blue, Copper King and Jalamid others to consider. Yakimov took a class 4 mile handicap at Southwell two starts ago and ran well enough when second over 10f at Chester last time. This looks to be his optimum trip and he is certainly well weighted against official ratings, so he gets the vote. Silver Blue enjoys a sound surface and this trip and is dropped a grade to compete here. That will stand him in good stead and he can be more competitive than of late. Copper King was out of his depth last time, but takes a significant drop in class here and on his best form he has a clear chance of going close with just about his optimum conditions, while course winner Jalamid has won in much better company than this but is on the slide at present and cannot be backed with confidence even in a claimer, where preference is for Yakimov.
Silver Blue (IRE) 8-1 (9-2) Tracked leaders, hung badly right from 2f out, no impression, 4th of 6, 9l behind Direct Debit (9-7) at Ascot 1m clm (4) gf.
Optimus (USA) 8-1 (9-4) Held up, not clear run over 2f out, hard ridden and hung left over 1f out, stayed on same pace inside final furlong, never troubled leaders, 4th of 9, 8l behind Realism (9-10) at Chester 1m 2f clm (5) sft in Jun.
Yakimov (USA) 13-8fav (9-3) Chased leaders, shaken up 3f out, not clear run briefly 2f out, soon ridden, stayed on to take 2nd close home, no chance with winner, 2nd of 9, 3 1/2l behind Realism (9-10) at Chester 1m 2f clm (5) sft in Jun.
Da Bookie (IRE) 33-1 (9-3) Slowly into stride, held up in rear, never a factor, last of 10, 8l behind Blue Line (8-1) at Lingfield 1m hcp 0-70 (5) pol in May.
Smart Cat (IRE) 9-2 (9-0) Prominent, ridden and effort over 2f out, kept on final furlong, 5th of 10, 3l behind Our Faye (10-0) at Salisbury 7f fll hcp (5) gf in Jun.
Trifti 16-1 (8-9) Behind, some headway final furlong, never nearer, 4th of 15, 3 1/2l behind Blue Mistral (8-10) at Brighton 1m hcp 0-65 (6) gf.
Copper King 14-1 (7-11) Held up towards rear, effort over 3f out, weakened over 2f out, last of 8, 19l behind Lovelace (8-4) at Haydock 7f 3yo hcp (3) gf in May.
A One (IRE) 14-1 (9-3) Raced centre, never on terms, 8th of 11, 21l behind Mafaheem (9-8) at Windsor 6f sll (5) hvy.
Hansomelle (IRE) 25-1 (8-2) Behind, headway over 1f out, stayed on inside final furlong, no danger, 6th of 13, 4 1/2l behind Fantasy Crusader (8-1) at Kempton 1m app hcp (6) pol in Jun.
Razzano (IRE) 4-1 (8-3) Held up in touch, headway over 3f out, led over 2f out, headed and no extra inside final furlong, 2nd of 7, 4l behind Kiss Chase (8-8) at Brighton 1m 3yo & 4yo sll (6) gs.
Jalamid (IRE) 20-1 (10-0) Led after 1f, headed over 4f out, ridden and weakened well over 2f out, 13th of 15, 29l behind Encores (8-3) at Newmarket 1m hcp 0-75 (5) gs in Jun.
Fire At Will 9-1 (8-13) Slowly into stride and behind, 9th of 14, 14l behind Chant de Guerre (8-4) at Lingfield 1m 2f sll (6) gd.
