Timeform Notebook: Restaurateur to serve up a victory

Three horses caught the eye at Wolverhampton last week.
Timeform identify another three eye-catchers from the past week's action...
The action at Longchamp may have commanded the attention of most people at the weekend, but we are more interested in a couple of contenders who were operating in the less glamorous surroundings of Wolverhampton.
Fitted with first-time blinkers, Restaurateur showed improved form to score his first victory of the season, pulling two-and- a-half lengths clear of his rivals to register an emphatic victory in a seven-furlong handicap on Friday evening. It is perhaps significant that Andrew Balding's colt was producing another fine effort on the all-weather, his record now standing at two wins and two seconds from only four starts. That in itself is not definitive proof of his preference for the surface, but his best efforts have come on the polytrack and he may be a horse to follow over the winter.
The following evening, English Summer shaped as if he will continue to be of interest in handicaps, finishing second in a one-and-a-half mile contest despite being disadvantaged by the way the race developed. Sent off as a strong favourite to supplement his recent success, English Summer was forced slightly wide entering the straight, conceding first run to the eventual winner. That was to prove a decisive moment as, although English Summer finished with plenty of purpose, he was unable to cut back the deficit, eventually beaten by only a neck. Based on the promise of that effort, he should not be waiting too long to gain compensation.
Our final Notebook horse is undoubtedly a bit of a dark one, but Moorway shaped better than the bare result at Wolverhampton on Saturday, making late headway to finish fourth on his nursery debut. Despite what the form figures may suggest, there had been a degree of promise to his three maiden efforts and he looks to have entered handicap company on a fair opening mark. Reg Hollinshead's colt wasn't knocked about in the closing stages and, with the benefit of this experience behind him, it would be little surprise were he capable of winning a similar event, hopefully at a decent price.
Runners Debrief:
Although it is possibly a bit premature to call an end to the Notebook famine, Miss Dashwood's victory at Wolverhampton on Friday was a welcome turn of events. Not only was it a relief to finally get off the mark, the style of the victory strongly suggested that she will remain of interest in future handicaps. The James Fanshawe-trained filly travelled powerfully throughout the contest and made smooth headway to hit the front, idling once in the lead. This may have concealed the true extent of her superiority from the assessor and she is one to keep firmly onside.
An impressive winner of a Newbury maiden on debut, Race And Status, although unable to add another victory, confirmed the impression that he is a colt of some potential, finishing third in a strongly-contested sales race, only finding a pair of rivals with Group-race experience too strong on the day. He looks sure to appreciate the step up to a mile and, given his imposing physique, there is significant room for improvement as he matures.
Touching on a couple of disappointments, Barren Brook once again put in one of his poorer efforts, failing to get involved having made a slow start. It is difficult to be bullish about him given his inconsistency this year, but he undoubtedly remains on a fair mark if putting it all together. Alnawiyah, making her third start in maiden company, simply raced too freely at the head of affairs, failing to build on her two promising efforts. However, she now qualifies for a handicap mark and, given her stamina-laden pedigree, it would be little surprise were she to return next year and make an impact in middle-distance handicaps.
Looking ahead, Cheworee, who was narrowly beaten a couple of weeks ago, is entered in a handicap at York on Saturday. Dropping back to five furlongs looks like an ideal move for this strong-travelling filly and, should she make the cut, she would have an obvious chance.
We feel that Secondo and Elkaayed are two maidens certainly capable of winning races, and that theory may be put to the test at Goodwood on Sunday. Both horses hold entries, over six furlongs and nine furlongs respectively, and we live in hope of a famous Notebook double.
Nargys has an entry in the Rockfel Stakes, but, selfishly, we hope that she will bypass that opportunity to secure valuable black type and wait for a chance to exploit her handicap mark. Other Notebook horses that may be seen this week include Princess Caetani and Semeen, who will be bidding to bounce back from slightly lacklustre runs last time.