held up in mid-division, headway before 11th, not fluent 13th, left 2nd last, no chance with winner
always behind, went 4th remote 4th latter stages
prominent, not fluent 4th, led next, headed 11th, weakened 4 out, pulled up before 2 out
chased leaders, blundered 11th, weakened before 2 out
mid-division, not fluent 4th, weakened and pulled up before 11th
chased leaders, went 2nd 13th, led and mistake 2 out, clear last, easily
held up in rear, fell 9th
towards rear, not fluent 3rd, headway 7th, outpaced 11th, plugged on from 2 out, mistake and left 3rd last, no chance with winner
led until 5th, led 11th, headed 2 out, no impression on winner when fell last
NonRunner
Dan Skelton runs three in this but it’s a surprise to see Harry riding the out-of-sorts Azzuri rather than unexposed Uttoxeter winner Shannon Bridge, who appears to have leading claims. Virgilio completes the trio but may find conditions too testing. Springtown Lake was back to his best when runner-up at Chepstow and the mare The Bay Birch would have claims on her best form but Sir Ivan’s Wincanton victory came over hurdles and he’s hard to catch right. Bigmartre remains out of sorts and Beau Bay and Storm Control may be in the handicapper’s grip so this can go to CLOUDY GLEN. Venetia Williams’ novice has only won a match so far but has looked a useful recruit when completing and failed to last home when second over 3m at Sandown last time.
The Bay Birch (IRE) 6-1 (11-0) Always last, behind 4 out, kept on flat, closing on 2nd towards finish, no chance with winner, last of 3, 12 1/4l behind Maire Banrigh (11-0) at Huntingdon 2m 4f lst (1) sft in Jan.
Bigmartre (FR) 11-1 (11-12) Soon towards rear, mistake 12th, never on terms, 7th of 11, 24 1/2l behind Just A Sting (11-1) at Kempton 3m hcp (2) sft in Dec.
Storm Control (IRE) 11-4fav (11-12) Tracked leaders, effort 4 out, held when hampered next, soon weakened, 5th of 9, dist behind Charmant (11-9) at Wetherby 2m 3f hcp (3) sft in Jan.
Sir Ivan 16-1 (11-12) Held up in touch, went 2nd before 7th, led approaching 9th, headed before last, soon led again, driven out, won at Wincanton 2m 5f hcp (3) sft in Jan beating Maypole Class (11-1) by 3/4l, 11 ran.
Azzuri 25-1 (11-12) Held up in rear, lost touch 7th, tailed off 5 out, last of 5, dist behind Katpoli (11-3) at Wetherby 1m 7f hcp (2) sft in Jan.
Springtown Lake (IRE) 2-1 (11-3) Led until 2nd, led 5th, headed 3 out, no impression on winner flat, 2nd of 7, 3 3/4l behind Tiquer (10-7) at Chepstow 2m 3f hcp (2) hvy in Dec.
Cloudy Glen (IRE) 6-1 (10-4) Pulled hard, not fluent 9th, rapid headway chasing leader 12th, led before 2 out, headed last, no extra run-in, 2nd of 10, 3 1/2l behind Deise Aba (10-7) at Sandown 3m hcp (2) sft in Feb.
Beau Bay (FR) 12-1 (11-8) Soon led, headed 6th, led again before next, headed after 5 out, soon under pressure, left in modest 2nd 3 out, no chance with winner, 2nd of 9, 23l behind Charmant (11-9) at Wetherby 2m 3f hcp (3) sft in Jan.
Shannon Bridge (IRE) 13-2 (11-8) Raced keenly, tracked leader, led 4th, headed next, led after 7th, headed and pecked last, soon led again, stayed on, won at Uttoxeter 2m 4f hcp (3) hvy in Dec beating Evidence De Thaix (11-7) by 1 1/2l, 6 ran.
Virgilio (FR) 33-1 (11-12) Towards rear, struggling from 6th, 8th of 10, dist behind Cervaro Mix (10-9) at Huntingdon 2m 4f hcp (2) gs in Feb.
