Pounce on the Cat for Rodeo Vase winner

Racing

Wednesday, May 07, 2008

By Burnaby

Pampas Cat can provide the John Gosden team with further ammunition for the summer by winning the Bank of America Chester Vase on Thursday.

In what does not strike as being a vintage renewal of this oft-informative Group Three, the Roodee feature could well be at this colt's mercy.

Unraced at two, Pampas Cat could not have been any more impressive on his debut at Newmarket, where he ruthlessly demolished a strong field.

Having led over a furlong out, the son of Seeking The Gold powered clear to score by five lengths from a clutch of well-touted contenders - many of whom hold entries at the top table.

That display suggests a couple more furlongs in the Chester Vase will be ideal.

Even though he is probably not an animal of the highest order, victory here would stand Pampas Cat in good stead for the likes of the King Edward VII Stakes at Royal Ascot.

Multidimensional must have a huge shout in the Grant Thornton Huxley Stakes.

The Henry Cecil-trained five-year-old is surely up to winning a Group Three race of this calibre, having finished an unlucky fifth to Literato in last year's Champion Stakes.

There was also much to like about Multidimensional pleasing seasonal bow at Newmarket, where his fourth-place finish behind stablemate Phoenix Tower did not tell the full story.

The Danehill entire is best seen when coming from off the pace and, clearly not wound-up for the encounter, he did not get the cover connections would have liked.

Indeed, he would also have got closer to the winner had trouble in-running not scotched a late flourish inside the last furlong.

While hold-up tactics can often backfire at Chester, he only has five rivals to overcome in this extended 10-furlong heat, which he really ought to be winning in order to vindicate some lofty entries later this term.

scape Route, a creditable fifth in the Lincoln on his penultimate outing, can land the Bank of Ireland Handicap.

While Gosden's gelding is likely to be stepped up to a mile and a half in time, this looks comfortably within his compass judged by the four-year-old's fluent success at Great Leighs last month.

The unexposed Magnitude may be a few pounds ahead of the assessor in the Halifax Handicap.

A ready scorer on his debut at Warwick, William Haggas' three-year-old was arguably denied a double by the rattling-fast conditions at Yarmouth, where he finished a neck second to Debonnaire.

Conditions on the Roodee should be a shade more forgiving for this son of Pivotal, who looks open to plenty of progress in these big handicaps.

French Art looked one for the notebook when second at Newbury in April.and should be followed