held up behind, headway over 2f out, carried right to inside rails, all out to lead well inside final furlong
tracked leaders, ridden when held and bumped final furlong
tracked leaders for 3f, dropped rear, weakened over 1f out
tracked leader, steady headway over 3f out, led over 2f out, wandering when headed and bumped inside final furlong
led and soon clear, headed over 2f out and weakened
held up behind, steady headway on outside over 4f out, ridden to chase leaders over 2f out, kept on
Adaikali has the look of a progressive sort and can make fitness tell over Sky Quest, with Stretton and Whitsbury Cross likely to make their presence felt as well. With none of his five rivals in top form at present, Adaikali should be able to build on his Pontefract success to prevail here. A seven-pound rise seems fair, given that his success at the Yorkshire track was produced off a strong pace, and this half-brother to Adilabad is clearly suited to ten furlongs. Sir Michael Stoute's colt should make the most of his fitness edge over the older Sky Quest who has been absent since scoring in class D company at Yarmouth last October. Stretton has been threatening to win a race all season and should be followed as he is a gutsy sort who will relish a battle. He would benefit from a strong gallop and it would be no surprise if he where to take a hand in proceedings. Whitsbury Cross is open to improvement but his Folkestone victory does not look good enough, and really, Adaikali has obvious claims and is hard to ignore.
