towards rear, soon pushed along, weakened halfway
led 1f, with leader, ridden to lead again briefly over 2f out, weakened final furlong
led after 1f, ridden and headed over 2f out, weakened over 1f out
mid-division, headway over 4f out, ridden to lead 2f out, soon clear, eased towards finishy
dwelt, outpaced, some headway over 1f out, never dangerous
prominent, lost place after 1f, ridden over 4f out, soon weakened
slowly into stride, outpaced, ridden and headway over 2f out, kept on final furlong, never nearer
mid-division, headway halfway, soon ridden, kept on one pace
chased leaders, ridden over 3f out, went second inside final furlong, no chance with winner
chased leader to halfway
Ile Facile can follow up his promising Southwell debut run and score here ahead of Two Of Clubs, Iamback, Firecat and possibly Another Expletive. The Nick Littmoden-trained selection cost 62,000 guineas as a two-year-old and showed plenty of dash over six furlongs on his debut nine days ago. This step up to seven furlongs should suit and he can make that experience pay. Firecat's best form has come at Southwell but, overall, is at a fairly low level. It is though on a par with the best of Iamback's Wolverhampton efforts. The latter's track form means that, of the two, we favour him more. Modesty Blaise showed some promise in two Turf maidens last spring but has been absent since. Angelo's Pride put in a best effort to date when third over a longer trip here last time but finished a length-and-a-half behind Iamback on that occasion and meets him on the same terms today. Of the others, Another Expletive looks to be getting the hang of this game and, with a very light weight, can't be ruled out. However, Ile Facile showed plenty of promise on his debut, and we take the view that he will benefit greatly from that experience and, even though he is untried on this surface, is our idea of the winner.
