Past Winners » Contributer

20th-Jun-2014

Although Bold Sniper ran an eye-catching race over nine furlongs on his reappearance, and although Michael Stoute’s horses have been improving significantly from their first runs of the year, it is not difficult to take him on at no better than 2/1 here …

There is plenty to like about Contributer. He was really impressive in the winning a listed race at Kempton, picking up nicely off a steady pace, on his penultimate run, and he shaped much better than the eventual distance by which he was beaten suggests in the Gordon Richards Stakes at Sandown on his most recent run.

He travelled well a little off the pace on that occasion, he had improved into second and was going best of all two and a half furlongs out, but the ground was very testing and conditions seemed to take their toll on him late on. That form gets stronger and stronger, with the first and second filling those positions again in the Huxley Stakes at Chester, and the winner Noble Mission going on to win the Group 1 Tattersalls Gold Cup.

Contributer should be much happier back on today’s faster ground, he ran really well in the King Edward VII Stakes last year on fast ground, when he didn’t quite fully getting home over a mile and a half. We know that he handles the track well, the return to 10 furlongs on fast ground should suit, and the continuing gradual return to form of Ed Dunlop’s horses – his two runners at Ascot yesterday both ran well – is another positive.

CONTRIBUTER WON (ADV 16/1 [R4], SP 9/1)