soon led, edged right, ridden and headed 1f out, stayed on well inside final furlong
close up, ridden over 2f out, weakened over 1f out
in touch, ridden to lead 1f out, edged left and headed near finish
chased leaders, ridden halfway, weakened over 2f out
chased leader, ridden and every chance from over 1f out, driven and ran on to lead near finish
slowly into stride, ran green, soon pushed along in rear, switched right and headway halfway, stayed on inside final furlong
chased leaders, effort and hung over 1f out, kept on same pace
L'Escapade can overcome an absence to beat May Morning, with Sunlit Skies and Moktabes worth noting in the market. David Loder normally does very well with his Yarmouth runners, and as long as L'Escapade is fit enough, he should quickly build on last season's efforts. They included a very close third to Australian at Kempton last October when he finished ahead of Unfurled. The latter came out this term to land the Predominate Stakes at Goodwood before finishing seventh to Motivator in the Vodafone Derby. Given a winter rest, L'Escapade is sure to have been well galloped, and will no doubt have his sights set considerably higher if all goes well today. May Morning has been a bit disappointing to date and will once again be there or thereabouts without being good enough, but the market may reveal whether Moktabes or debutante Sunlit Skies is good enough to trouble the selection. We are prepared to trust that L'Escapade is geared up and ready to make up for lost time.
Akona Matata (USA) 7-2 (8-10) Led after 1f, headed over 5f out, effort over 2f out, soon beaten, 6th of 9, 23l behind Rathor (8-10) at Pontefract 1m 2f mdn stk (5) gf.
L'Escapade (IRE) 7-1 (9-0) In touch, pushed along 3f out, ridden to dispute 2nd final furlong, kept on, 3rd of 10, 1/2l behind Australian (9-0) at Kempton 1m 2yo mdn (D3) gf in Sept.
Moktabes (USA) 10-3fav (9-0) Dwelt, soon chased leaders, switched outside 4f out, headway 3f out, ridden and weakened over 1f out, 12th of 15, 30l behind Celticello (9-0) at Ripon 1m 3yo mdn (5) sft in May.
Be Lucky Lady (GER) 20-1 (8-9) In touch, chased leaders over 2f out, weakened rapidly over 1f out, 9th of 14, 6l behind Dance Partner (8-9) at Lingfield 1m 2f 3yo mdn aut (6) pol in Jun.
May Morning (IRE) 7-2 (8-9) With leader, ridden and outpaced over 1f out, no impression final furlong, 4th of 11, 4 1/2l behind All Ivory (9-0) at Thirsk 7f 3yo mdn (5) gf in Jun.
Sunlit Skies Selkirk filly, sister to 6f-7f winner Sheltering Sky, half-sister to numerous winning sprinters.
Woolacombe Dream Orpen filly out of a lightly-raced mare.
