made all, driven clear 2f out, soon well in command
prominent, hard driven over 3f out, weakened over 2f out
chased winner, under pressure over 4f out, stayed on same pace from 2f out
tracked leaders early, soon outpaced, never a factor
prominent, lost place over 4f out, soon beaten
tracked winner, lost place over 8f out
chased leaders, reminders 8f out, headway to chase leaders over 3f out, lost place 2f out
slowly away, tracked leaders, lost place over 7f out, rallied over 2f out, stayed on final furlong, no chance with winner
outpaced in rear, some late headway never nearer
IBN HIYYAN gave a reasonable John Gosden horse a good race here last time and, with mark unchanged, can score on his handicap debut ahead of Second Brook and Blinka Me in what doesn't look a good race. Mark Johnston's gelding confirmed a liking for this surface when giving odds-on backers a scare here last week and this company will be more to his liking. He may not fulfil the promise of his pedigree but there's no doubt a mark of 60 should give connections plenty to work with in this type of event. Second Brook ran well here on his sole try so must be included in calculations. Connections reach to the first-time visor in the hope it sparks a better performance than when the horse last ran and if it does then our selection will know he's had a race. Blinka Me is perhaps unsurprisingly blinkered ahead of his run here and this one ran above expectations in a fair claimer last time, so if he repeats that on this more holding surface the Mark Tompkins trained animal would have a chance. Red Valerian Two is modest and has a bit to find with Second Brook on a line through Wedding Dream but he seems to act on the track and is another with place claims in what isn't a good race. The market will help tell us which of the handicap newcomers are expected to run well with Tim Easterby's Bollin Andrew of particular interest under David Allan. Rosewood Lad is another to note as he should be suited by taking to Fibresand but unless the market screams no we'll say yes to Ibn Hiyyan.
Ibn Hiyyan (USA) 5-2 (8-5) Soon tracking leader, led 4f out, headed approaching final furlong, no extra, 2nd of 7, 3l behind Sir Pitt (8-5) at Southwell 1m 4f mdn auc stks (5) fbs in Mar.
Second Brook (IRE) 10-3fav (9-1) Held up towards rear, ridden over 2f out, weakened inside final furlong, 5th of 8, 12l behind Il Portico (8-11) at Wolverhampton 1m 4f hcp 0-60 (6) pol in Mar.
Blinka Me 16-1 (8-8) Steadied start, pulled hard in rear, headway and not clear run over 1f out, soon ridden, never nearer, 5th of 12, 4 1/2l behind Mary Helen (8-8) at Kempton 1m 2f 2yo clm stks (6) pol in Nov.
Red Valerian Two (IRE) 12-1 (8-9) Tracked leaders in rear, pushed along 3f out, no impression, 3rd of 4, 10l behind Tiger Hawk (8-3) at Southwell 1m 3yo clm stks (6) fbs in Feb.
Swindlers Lass (IRE) 150-1 (8-12) Went right start, in touch, pushed along 3f out, wide and struggling straight, 7th of 8, 11l behind My Nan Nell (8-12) at Wolverhampton 1m 1f 3yo mdn auc stks (5) pol in Mar.
Hotgrove Boy 100-1 (9-0) Prominent, weakened over 1f out, 10th of 13, 33l behind Burnett (9-0) at Newcastle 1m mdn stks (5) gs in Oct.
Bollin Andrew 100-1 (9-3) Slowly into stride, behind, outpaced 4f out, never on terms, 8th of 10, 18l behind Navy List (9-0) at Redcar 1m 1f 2yo mdn (5) gf in Sep.
Rosewood Lad 66-1 (9-3) Held up in touch, under pressure over 5f out, soon beaten, 5th of 6, 15l behind Beggar's Opera (9-3) at Lingfield 1m 4f 3yo mdn stks (5) pol in Mar.
Micky's Bird 100-1 (8-5) Always towards rear, 10th of 11, 9l behind Destiny's Dancer (8-1) at Wolverhampton 7f hcp (0-55) (6) pol in Mar.
