A horse that beat Douvan runs in the 5:25 at Carlisle tonight (bet those words have never been uttered before), and i think he's worth a little each way punt at 22/1.
KONIG DAX beat Douvan back in May 2014 on soft ground, but since then his career has been a bit of a mess. Having gone through the McCain and Pipe yards, he is now with Allistair Whilans and running off a rating of 74 on the flat.
This race isn't the strongest, and even without the Douvan backstory I would give him a decent chance on form alone. Back in June over 11f he finished a length behind a horse called My Brother, who was beaten 2 lengths in a class 3 shortly after. In July he finished a length and a bit behind Komodo who has since won two Class 4's. That was his best run since the Douvan days, and tellingly it came on softish ground. Today he takes on 1 mile 1 furlong for the second time in his career (having won his only other attempt back in France in 2013). This will also be the only time since beating Douvan that he has encountered soft/heavy ground. His form to me this year gives him a good chance alone back in a Class 5, if you factor in that the heavy ground should suit and the opposition isn't the strongest, he must have place claims at the very least. I just hope they don't send him for the lead as they have done in his last few races - if they keep him a little off the pace then i'd reckon he'll be staying on towards the finish in that ground better than most.
Come on guys, it's piss easy.
