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Racecards

14:20 Southwell

Betfred Conditions Stakes (Class 3)

  • 4 Runners
  • Distance: 1m 4f
  • Going: Soft to Heavy, Heavy in places
  • Surface: Turf
Weighed In
  • Winning Time: 2m 56.29s
  • 4 Ran
1(2)
Silk - Royal Blue, White spots, White sleeves, Royal Blue armlets and spots on White cap
1/6
  • Form 211327-
  • Age 4
  • Weight 9-1
  • Official Rating 95

led, pushed along over 5f out, ridden 2f out, was headed approaching final furlong, no extra inside

2(3)
Silk - Royal Blue, White epaulets, checked sleeves
16/1
  • Form 715424/
  • Age 6
  • Weight 8-13
  • Official Rating 102

in touch, pushed along and lost ground over 4f out, weakened over 2f out

3(4)
Silk - Orange, White diamonds on sleeves
28/1
  • Form 501010/
  • Age 5
  • Weight 8-13
  • Official Rating 97

held up, headway to challenge over 6f out, driven over 4f out, weakened over 2f out

4(1)
Silk - Purple, Red epaulets and sleeves, White cap
12/1
  • Form 210356-
  • Age 6
  • Weight 8-8
  • Official Rating 81

held up, pushed along over 5f out, headway 3f out, led on bit approaching final furlong, driven out

In depth

Verdict

Quite simply, Shalapour is head and shoulders above today's three rivals so gets a confident vote over Double Obsession, Into The Shadows and Mudawin. Shalapour was campaigned at Group level by John Oxx last year, one notable achievement being a four-and-a-half length third to Hurricane Run in the Budweiser Irish Derby. The son of Darshaan has been purchased by Markus Graff who has made a successful habit of buying from the Aga Khan in the past with the likes of Darasim and Akbar, and it is hoped that this four-year-old will more than recoup the outlay. Word on the street is that Mark Johnston has his Turf team well forward already, and so everything is in place for a winning start. Double Obsession of course was formerly trained by Johnston and is having his first outing since 2004. It is unusual to see this type of horse move to Dandy Nichols who is better known for his sprint exploits, and it will be interesting to see how the six-year-old is placed. Into the Shadows returns from a spell hurdling, while Mudawin was a fair handicapper two years ago but is another with something to prove on his return. This should be a formality really for the class horse in the line-up, Shalapour.

Formwatch

Shalapour (IRE) 9-2 (8-12) Chased leaders in 4th, pushed along over 5f out, no impression straight, eased close home, 7th of 9, 7l behind Collier Hill (9-8) at Curragh 1m 6f Grp 1 gd in Sept.

Double Obsession 9-1 (9-4) Prominent throughout, one pace final furlong, 4th of 9, 3 1/2l behind Gold Medallist (9-4) at Deauville 1m 7f Grp 2 sft in Aug '04.

Mudawin (IRE) 12-1 (9-5) Held up, effort wide over 2f out, soon under pressure and weakened, 14th of 17, 14l behind Admiral (8-0) at Ascot 1m 4f 3yo hcp 0-105 (B) gf in Jun '04.

Into The Shadows 3-1fav (9-5) Held up in touch, chased leader until 2f out, soon beaten, 6th of 7, 7l behind Caribbean Pearl (7-13) at Newmarket 1m 4f fll hcp (3) sft in Oct.