held up towards rear, headway on outside over 4f out, wide entering straight, soon edged left and beaten
soon chasing leader, led over 10f out, ridden 2f out, headed well over 1f out, weakened well inside final furlong
held up towards rear, ridden and struggling over 3f out
always prominent, led well over 1f out, soon edged left and headed, no extra when lost 2nd near finish
tracked leaders, led over 1f out, ridden out
slowly into stride, soon in touch racing keenly, weakened well over 1f out
slowly into stride, held up in rear, ridden when squeezed through 2f out, switched left well over 1f out, kept on inside final furlong, never nearer
held up towards rear, hampered just over 2f out, edged left entering final furlong, never dangerous
led over 1f, tracked leader until over 4f out, kept on same pace from over 1f out
Withdrawn
Apache Fort runs this track well so he needs respect, however the drop back in trip should suit ZALKANI who is preferred to Our Kes. Jeff Pearce's experienced gelding was a solid third here last time out behind Dot's Delight. The drop back to this trip won't harm his chances and he is now racing again off a mark of 60 which leaves him looking fairly treated. Smooth As Silk has a bit to prove at present, so a bigger threat may be Apache Fort who has a good record at the track and Tom Keddy's gelding is now rated 59, some 11lb lower than when winning at Lingfield last season. Bricks And Porter needs to improve on his Irish form but the step up in trip may bring that about, Tar ran with promise at Southwell last time out, whilst Roleplay and Our Kes comes here in pretty decent form but both have stamina issues. Annambo doesn't; he's a course and distance winner and his recent third at Bath was a bounce back to form so he remains of interest. Desert Leader, King's Fable and Thorny Mandate, all have the course and distance form in the book to feature, whilst Swords is starting to look dangerously well-handicapped after a quiet spell. Competitive stuff, but the feeling is that Zalkani can rack up all-weather win number fifteen.
Zalkani (IRE) 17-2 (9-3) Held up, headway on outer over 3f out, ridden over 1f out, kept on, 3rd of 13, 1 3/4l behind Dot's Delight (8-2) at Wolverhampton 1m 6f hcp 0-65 (6) pol in Jul.
Apache Fort 8-1 (10-2) Held up towards rear, headway approaching 3f out, modest 4th over 1f out, 4th of 8, 10l behind Maslak (10-13) at Windsor 1m 4f am hcp 0-75 (5) gf in Aug.
Bricks and Porter (IRE) 16-1 (8-12) Rear of mid-division for most, never a factor, 13th of 20, 10l behind Final Flashback (8-8) at Leopardstown 1m 1f hcp 50-80 gd in Aug.
Roleplay (IRE) 25-1 (9-12) Slowly into stride, raced stand side, chased leader, joined centre group halfway, in rear, ridden over 2f out, not trouble leaders, 7th of 10, 7l behind King's Icon (8-13) at Yarmouth 1m hcp 0-65 (6) gf in Aug.
Annambo 10-1 (9-7) Held up in mid-division, headway over 3f out, soon challenging, driven to lead over 1f out, headed well inside final furlong, 3rd and held when not much room near finish, 3rd of 12, 2 1/4l behind Looks The Business (9-5) at Bath 1m 5f hcp 0-55 (6) fm in Aug.
Our Kes (IRE) 7-1 (9-3) Steadied start, held up in rear, ridden and headway over 1f out, kept on inside final furlong, 4th of 11, 2 3/4l behind King Of Connacht (9-4) at Wolverhampton 1m 1f hcp 0-60 (6) pol in Aug.
Desert Leader (IRE) 20-1 (9-13) Tracked leader, effort well over 2f out, soon weakened, 10th of 11, 12l behind Safebreaker (10-10) at Chester 1m 4f am hcp 0-75 (5) gf in Aug.
King's Fable (USA) 11-1 (10-9) Held up, led approaching 3f out, headed over 2f out, kept on final furlong, 2nd of 9, 1 1/2l behind Sky Quest (11-6) at Windsor 1m 4f am hcp 0-70 (5) gf in Aug.
Thorny Mandate 20-1 (8-11) Chased leaders, ridden over 2f out, soon weakened, 10th of 11, 23l behind Saborido (8-11) at Warwick 1m 7f hcp 0-70 (5) gd in Aug.
Swords 9-2 (8-13) Tracked leaders, led 2f out, soon headed, weakened inside final furlong, 5th of 10, 4 1/2l behind Tiger Tee (8-5) at Wolverhampton 2m app hcp 0-65 (6) pol in Aug.
Smooth As Silk (IRE) 10-1 (9-2) Held up towards rear, headway on inside over 2f out, soon not clear run briefly and switched right, stayed on same pace inside final furlong, 4th of 11, 3l behind Rose Row (9-5) at Wolverhampton 1m 4f hcp 0-70 (5) pol in Aug.
Tar (IRE) 66-1 (9-10) Tracked leader, led 5f out, ridden and headed well over 1f out, soon one pace, 3rd of 12, 5l behind Astrolibra (9-2) at Southwell 1m 3f app hcp 0-60 (6) fbs in Aug.
