My thought process of Scoville leading in a race which lacked pace was blown straight out of the water when he decided to leave the stalls in dead last.
From the start, Tom Marquand had to make a decision. Waste a lot of petrol to get to the front, or sit and hope the race unfolds nicely for the horse. It turns out he couldn't go the pace and stayed on towards the end. I still think if he set his own fractions, seven furlongs would be fine for him.
Daryzan was given a rubbish ride by Barzalona, no shock there, but I don't think it made too much of a difference to the final result.
Precise 11/4 – Deauville 2.50
I think you've got to put a bit more respect on Precise's name. Before bumping into Blue Bolt, people were hyping her up. In reality, Blue Bolt is a Group 1 level filly, and if she were in this race, I'd happily say she'd be a relatively short-priced favourite.
Based on that, I have to believe that Precise is the play in this race. More Thunder was good last year and has finished second in the Lockinge this year, but his last two runs have been below par. As for the rest of the field, I can't get excited about them. Zeus Olympios won a Group 2 last time out, but beat Holloway Boy by half a length; does that warrant him being the same price as Precise? Not in my book.
Usually, I think the older horses hold the edge in races like this as they are more physically and mentally mature, and they can overcome the weight difference. In this scenario, I don't think they will be able to forfeit 10lbs to Precise, meaning that if they all run to form, they're going to need to run to 125 or better if Precise ups her game.
Fluorescence 9/4 – Pontefract 5.45
If Badri was a couple of years younger, I'd be all over him for this race, but at the age he is, surely it's going to be tough to win this.
It would be crazy if Kylian decided to win today after I've been in his camp for three of his runs this season and he has shown very little. In the end, the filly, Fluorescence, was the one who stood out the most.
She ran very well in a good handicap at Hamilton last time out. The winner had been knocking on the door for a while, and I know some people in the racing world think he is a Group sprinter. Fluorescence gets in this off a 2lb higher mark, but that still makes her quite well handicapped.
GambleAware