slowly into stride, soon chased leaders, went 2nd 2f out until ridden over 1f out, weakened inside final furlong
raced freely, chased winner until 2f out, weakened over 1f out
raced on near side rail, chased leaders, headway over 1f out, 3rd and one pace inside final furlong
went slightly left start, raced in centre, chased leaders, pushed along halfway, ridden and went 2nd over 1f out, ran on inside final furlong, not reach winner
raced in centre, made all, ridden over 1f out, ran on
slowly into stride, off the pace in last pair, never on terms
taken steadily to post, pulled hard early, always behind, tailed off when hung badly left final 2f
AL ASEF ended last year with a three-length romp at Wolverhampton. He’s penalised for that success but both placed horses have subsequently won and Marco Botti’s colt gets the nod on that form as he’s also weighted to beat Kimifive, a runner-up at Bath on his penultimate start. How Far showed some progress at Chelmsford last time and should go well along with the returning Dubai Silk, who made a modest start at Lingfield in November. Eternal Destiny has speed on her dam’s side but her only winning relative won over 2m in France.
Al Asef 5-4fav (9-2) Tracked leaders in 3rd place, led inside final furlong, kept on well, won at Wolverhampton 5f stks (5) pol in Dec beating Midsummer Knight (9-2) by 3 1/4l, 11 ran.
Wedgewood Wonder 40-1 (9-0) Chased winner, edged right 4f out, lost 2nd 2f out, weakened over 1f out, 5th of 7, 16 1/2l behind Under The Covers (9-8) at Bath 6f mdn fll stks (5) gf in Jun.
How Far (IRE) 7-1 (9-3) Hampered start, driven forward, soon led, headed halfway, under pressure well over 1f out, soon one pace, 4th of 11, 3 1/2l behind Tadbir (9-3) at Chelmsford City 6f mdn stks (4) pol in Apr.
Kimifive (IRE) 9-1 (8-7) Steadied and bumped start, held up, headway halfway, never dangerous, 8th of 15, 2 1/4l behind Koditime (9-8) at York 5f hcp (3) gf in May.
Dubai Silk 9-1 (8-11) Pressed winner until ridden over 1f out, keeping on same pace when lost 3rd towards finish, 4th of 8, 3 3/4l behind Drakefell (9-2) at Lingfield 5f stks (5) pol in Nov.
Eternal Destiny Poet's Voice filly out of Mrs Mogg.
Skip To My Lou 50-1 (8-8) Raced keenly, led briefly, pressed leader, pushed along halfway, ridden over 1f out, soon weakened quickly, last of 10, 14 1/4l behind Mighty Mac (8-13) at Lingfield 6f stks (6) pol in Feb.