Features / Timeform / 05 July 2010 / Leave a comment Free £25 Bet

Twice Over did things the hard way in winning Henry Cecil his first Eclipse since 1978...

"TWICE OVER put up a Group 1 performance - one of the very best of his career - in style if not substance, as he did a lot more than a literal reading of this form portrays..."

The bottom line is this was a substandard Eclipse, the field comparatively weak to start with and even more so with Mawatheeq refusing at the stalls, while the one three-year-old had been exposed in several classics, and only a low view of the form can be taken from the outcome, due primarily to Sri Putra's proximity, though easily explained by the tactical element of the race. The winner was much more superior than the bare result as, ridden to combat perceived main threat Dar Re Mi, he went too soon for his own good off an already strong pace, rather teeing things up for the second and third who had bided their time, gaining late, but Twice Over's class got him through.

TWICE OVER put up a Group 1 performance - one of the very best of his career - in style if not substance, as he did a lot more than a literal reading of this form portrays, scraping home from inferior rivals in the end but doing well to hang on at all after such a forceful ride intent on dealing with Dar Re Mi, soon breaking that one in the straight, and the three length advantage that he had one furlong out is a truer reflection of his supremacy than at the line by which time the pace influence had kicked in, Twice Over understandably jaded. He'll presumably head for the Juddmonte at York, though it's normally the target for some top-notchers and he's still not in that bracket.

SRI PUTRA isn't suddenly a Group 1 horse, no inkling of it previously in his career and flattered by the circumstances here, others underperforming for one thing, but above all he had a big advantage in sitting last off the strong pace, before picking up the pieces down the outside in the final furlong, getting misleadingly close to Twice Over.

VISCOUNT NELSON's improvement is easier to swallow than the second's, for all both had the run of the race, as Viscount Nelson did at least get involved earlier in the straight, not forgetting that he's also a three-year-old having just his second go at the trip after doing better than stablemate Cape Blanco in the French Derby. He was in different headgear this time.

DAR RE MI's heavy defeat can't be overlooked completely, certainly not the ideal stepping stone to the King George, but there were mitigating circumstances, predominantly the unrelenting pressure from Twice Over after she'd set her stall out, the scenario exposing any potential shortcomings from her absence since a lifetime best in Dubai over a mile and a half, arguably her optimum trip.

ZACINTO hasn't put his major problems behind him after all, the trip not the issue.

Tags: Eclipse, Henry Cecil, Sri Putra, Timeform Perspective, Twice Over, Viscount Nelson