Thin Red Line

Thin Red Line produced a good effort to finish third, considering he chased a really fast early pace, in a competitive 10-furlong handicap at Epsom on Friday. The two horses that ultimately finished first and second, Fiery Lad and Ramona Chase, raced in last and third-last places respectively through the early stages, while the other horses who helped set or chased the early pace, Australia Day, Swift Chap, Kings Destiny, Leceile and Sand Tiger all faded out of it. Thin Red Line travelled well into the home straight, he was angled out to the outside three furlongs out and he did pick up when Philip Makin asked him to two and a half furlongs out, but he had no answer to the finishing surges of Fiery Lad and Ramona Chase from behind him. Even so, he still kept on admirably to hold onto third by a whisker from Red Jade.

This was another solid effort from Thin Red Line, building on the promise he had shown on his previous run when he won easily at Chester on his debut this season, coming from stall 12 out of 14, travelling smoothly throughout before going away to win impressively. The way he kept on here, after chasing the fast pace early on, left the impression that a step up in trip would suit, he won over 12 furlongs on his last start last year and was only beaten a nose on his only previous attempt at that trip prior to that. The handicapper has left him unchanged on a mark of 95 for this, which is more than fair, and he remains a highly progressive sort.

Previously trained by Ed Dunlop, he moved over to Michael Dods’s stable for this season and his new trainer seems to have brought about more improvement. He will be interesting wherever he appears next, especially if that is over a mile and a half.

4th June 2010