chased leader on inside, pushed along and weakened home turn
mid-division, pushed along and outpaced 3 out, weakened 2 out
led, ridden and headed 2 out, chased winner thereafter, kept on from last
always towards rear, never a factor
in rear, headway under pressure behind leaders 2 out, stayed on well from last to grab 3rd
rear of mid-division, some headway 3 out, soon pushed along and made no impression
held up, struggling and weakened rapidly home turn, pulled up before 3 out
prominent, ridden to press leader 2 out when blundered, weakened last and lost 3rd flat
mid-division out wide, rapid headway under pressure to lead narrowly 2 out, clear last, ran on well flat
Nico de Boinville took the sensible option of pulling up RATHMACKNEE after the gelding was hampered at an early stage in the Lanzarote Hurdle. The gelding had previously scored tidily at Doncaster and runs here off an unchanged mark, but with the stable conditional claiming his full 10lb. He's yet to ride a winner but maybe this will prove to be the day he does. A Different Kind found it all too much when beaten a long way in the Greatwood Hurdle at Cheltenham and now returns to action in much calmer waters and should be in the shake-up, with a previous close second to Peking Rose at Aintree reading well. West To The Bridge could still do with a little more respite from the assessor, so Go Dante, a novice hurdle of some promise, is preferred for the shortlist on this first start since December 2021.
Floueur (FR) 11-2 (11-10) Tracked leader, 2nd before 4th, closer in 3rd before 7th, under pressure in 4th after 7th, mistake 3 out, lost place and weakened quickly before 2 out, 8th of 10, dist behind Saint Sam (11-6) at Punchestown 2m 4f Soft - Heavy in Dec.
A Different Kind (IRE) 6-1 (11-8) Chased leaders, weakened approaching 2 out (normal 3 out), 11th of 13, dist behind I Like To Move It (12-0) at Cheltenham 2m hcp (1) gd in Nov.
West To The Bridge (IRE) 20-1 (11-10) In rear, in touch, headway home turn, went 3rd 3 out, soon pushed along, no impression on front pair from 2 out, 3rd of 10, 9 3/4l behind Flight Deck (12-0) at Chepstow 3m hcp (2) sft in Dec.
Ballybegg (IRE) 10-1 (11-12) Mid-division, weakened after 4 out, tailed off when hit next, pulled up before the last, at Lingfield 2m 7f hcp (3) sft in Nov.
Es Perfecto (IRE) 10-11fav (11-7) Tracked leaders, travelled well before 3 out, jumped into lead 2 out, in control approaching last, comfortably, won at Chepstow 2m 3f (4) gs in Mar beating Pozo Emery (11-7) by 5l, 16 ran.
Go Dante 11-1 (11-7) Raced keenly, never fluent, soon steadied rear, hampered 2 out, left remote 4th at the last, never on terms, 4th of 7, 13l behind Stage Star (11-7) at Newbury 2m 5f (1) sft in Dec.
Rathmacknee (IRE) 20-1 (10-7) Towards rear when badly hampered by faller 2nd, tailed off and pulled up before 5th, at Kempton 2m 5f hcp (2) sft in Jan.
Corrieben Reiver 12-1 (12-0) Not fluent on occasions, tracked leader, ridden and lost position 4 out, pulled up 2 out, at Kelso 2m 1f hcp (3) hvy in Dec.
Dargiannini (IRE) 14-1 (10-10) Chased leaders, hit 2nd, in contention when fell 8th, at Doncaster 2m hcp (3) gd in Dec.
