Midfield, nudged along and lost place before ninth, weakened
Midfield, ridden and weakened before 4 out, pulled up before 3 out
Held up, headway 10th, mistake 6 out, pushed along 3 out, weakened 2 out
Midfield, headway to chase leaders before 4 out, nudged along 3 out, ridden to join leaders 2 out, no extra after last
In leading pair, headed 10th, ridden and weakened after 5 out, pulled up before last
Prominent, nudged along after ninth, drifted back to midfield 10th, headway to chase leader 5 out, ridden and with leaders 2 out, ran on
Held up, headway to chase leaders before 4 out, nudged along 3 out, joined leaders 2 out, ridden to lead after last, ran on well
In leading pair, outright lead 10th, ridden and headed 2 out, weakened after last
Held up, mistake 1st, pushed along and headway 4 out, weakened last
A very competitive opener in which none can be ruled out. Veteran King Alfonso is the only previous course winner in the line-up but has changed stables recently. Whoshotwho is becoming disappointing but Sizing At Midnight is on a winning mark. Flying Verse can’t get much lower in the weights while Reve shed a plate last time at Aintree. Quartz Du Rheu is surely better than he’s shown so far but stamina might be an issue for Outonpatrol. OSCAR MONTEL failed to land the odds at Hexham but he’ll strip fitter here and, after only two runs over fences, is preferred to the similarly unexposed Shentri.
Reve 9-1 (11-8) Led, ridden and headed after 2 out, lost 3rd last, no extra, 4th of 8, 12l behind Empire De Maulde (11-6) at Aintree 3m 1f hcp (3) gd in Jun.
King Alfonso 18-1 (11-4) 2nd until before the 2nd, chased leaders, not fluent 6th, lost place 8th, outpaced next, well beaten from 4 out, tailed off, 7th of 8, dist behind Tonto's Spirit (10-0) at Cartmel 2m 1f hcp (3) gd in May.
Whoshotwho (IRE) 9-2 (11-7) Held up in rear, not fluent 1st, headway 8th, outpaced when blundered 3 out, soon weakened, 7th of 8, 25 3/4l behind Princeton Royale (11-6) at Worcester 2m 4f hcp (3) gd in Jun.
Oscar Montel (IRE) 10-11fav (11-4) Tracked leaders, went 2nd 9th, not fluent 12th, led and landed awkwardly 3 out, driven and pressed flat, headed towards finish, 2nd of 7, 1/2l behind All Hail Caesar (11-4) at Hexham 3m (4) gd in Jun.
Sizing At Midnight (IRE) 6-1 (12-2) Led until after 1st, chased leaders, went 2nd before 4 out going well, ridden before 2 out, soon beaten, lost 2nd from last, 3rd of 5, 11 3/4l behind Drumlee Watar (11-10) at Newton Abbot 3m 2f hcp (4) sft in Jun.
Outonpatrol (IRE) 5-2 (11-6) Tracked leaders, left disputing 2nd from 5th, mistake 10th, well held 4th from 3 out, 4th of 5, 20 3/4l behind Ruthless Article (11-8) at Aintree 2m 4f hcp (3) gd in Jun.
Quartz Du Rheu (FR) 16-5 (11-7) Jumped left and not that fluent, in rear, closed before 4 out, no impression, well held from 2 out, 5th of 6, 12 1/4l behind Jemima P (11-11) at Ffos Las 2m 3f hcp (4) gs in May.
Flying Verse 4-1 (10-13) Rear group, not fluent 2nd or 5th, headway 12th, weakened from 3 out, last of 8, dist behind Empire De Maulde (11-6) at Aintree 3m 1f hcp (3) gd in Jun.
Shentri (FR) 9-4fav (10-3) Held up towards rear, closer 4 out, shaken up 3 out, weakened and no impression after 2 out, 5th of 6, dist behind Jarveys Plate (11-12) at Worcester 2m 7f hcp (3) gd in Jun.
