held up rear, plenty to do over 1f out, ran on strongly final furlong, nearest finish
tracked leader to over 2f out, weakened over 1f out
mid-division, ridden over 2f out, soon weakened
slowly into stride, mid-division, headway over 1f out, driven to lead inside final furlong, all out
led, hard pressed 1f out, headed inside final furlong, kept on
in touch, effort over 1f out, not quicken and one pace final furlong
tracked leaders, ridden over 2f out, not quicken over 1f out, and weakened quickly over final furlong
held up towards rear, headway over 1f out, strong run inside final furlong to take 2nd post and gaining near finish
tracked leader, ridden to dispute lead inside final furlong, no extra and lost 2nd post
held up towards rear, headway over 1f out, stayed on final furlong, nearest finish
Smokin Joe has long been threatening to pick up a small prize and rates as a better value option than the penalised Burgundy and the ex-German horse, Exit To Luck, in this open handicap. The last named may have needed the run when he made his British debut at Wolverhampton at the start of this month but should be sharper for the outing today. The Steve Gollings-trained five-year-old is a multiple winner in his homeland and, as a stoutly-bred type, he should have very few problems with the trip. Burgundy can never be ruled out at this sort of level and, as he proved last week, he is still a force to be reckoned with on his day. The gelding is a previous course and distance winner and he can be expected to play a good supporting role this afternoon. However, preference goes to Smokin Joe, who is unexposed at ten furlongs but, surprisingly for a brother to formerly smart sprinter Smokin Beau, he has run a blinder each time his stamina has been tested this far.
Burgundy 12-1 (9-7) Held up, headway 2f out, led over 1f out, stayed on, won at Kempton 1m 4f hcp 0-65 (6) pol beating Lennoxtown (8-7) by 2 1/2l, 10 ran.
Exit to Luck (GER) 16-1 (9-2) Towards rear, soon driven along, ridden 3f out, stayed on through beaten horses, 2nd of 5, 3 1/2l behind Happy as Larry (9-0) at W'hampton 1m 1f hcap (5) pol.
Smokin Joe 5-1 (9-3) Pulled hard, held up, headway over 2f out, ridden to go 3rd approaching final furlong, kept on, no chance with leading pair, 3rd of 13, 3l behind Rapid City (8-11) at Lingfield 1m 2f hcp 0-70 (5) pol.
Bank On Benny 3-1 (9-0) Held up, headway over 3f out, ridden over 2f out, one pace final furlong, eased towards finish, 4th of 16, 7l behind Pure Imagination (8-12) at Nottingham 1m app hcp (5) sft in Oct.
Luckylover 7-1 (9-1) Chased leaders stand side, effort over 2f out, soon one pace, 3rd of 14, 7l behind Orpen Wide (9-2) at Newcastle 1m hcp 0-70 (5) gd in Sept.
Generous Lad (IRE) 50-1 (9-0) Dwelt, held up in rear, good headway on wide outside over 1f out, led just inside final furlong, soon clear, won at Kempton 1m 2f hcp 0-60 (6) pol beating Kilgary (9-2) by 2 1/2l, 10 ran.
Sarwin (USA) 5-2 (8-10) Mid-division, headway 3f out, switched right over 1f out, ran on to chase winner and edged left inside final furlong, 2nd of 9, 1 1/2l behind Hilltop Destiny (8-9) at W'hampton 1m 4f hcap (5) pol.
Siena Star (IRE) 10-1 (8-11) Mid-division, ridden and headway 2f out, soon one pace, 5th of 13, 6l behind Rapid City (8-11) at Lingfield 1m 2f hcp 0-70 (5) pol.
