You Mind Me goes fastest in Pall Mall semis
Chris Allsopp: Has two runners into the Pall Mall final at Oxford
PICTURE: STEVE NASHTHURSDAY night saw Oxford stage the three semi-finals of the Ladbrokes Pall Mall and fastest qualifier going forward to Tuesday's £8,000 to-the-winner final (live on Sky Sports) is You Mind Me.
The opening qualifier featured ante-post favourite Droopys Loner however, Dean Childs' bitch was crowded at the start and again at the first bend and finished a disappointing fourth.
The heat went to Frank Taylor's You Mind Me (5-1) who made all of the running to beat last year's runner-up Dromana Max by half-a-length in 27.24sec.
The second eliminator saw Pat Curtin's Farloe Mysterio (5-1) beat defending champion Brittons Empire in a time of 27.45sec.
Serious crowding at the first turn left Brittons Empire in front but the writing was on the wall for Chris Allsopp's charge as the strong-running Farloe Mysterio loomed up large on the final bends and stayed on well to mug the champ by half-a-length.
The third semi saw a home win for trainer Richard Yeates as his Aherlow Shaw (7-2) got the better of Chris Allsopp's Smart Bid in a time of 27.49sec.
Smart Bid led up but moved off at the second bend as Westmead Shaw went on. However, Aherlow Shaw made a race-winning move around the third bend and kicked on to beat the rallying Smart Bid by two lengths.
Draw for Tuesday's Final : 1 Smart Bid, 2 Brittons Empire, 3 You Mind Me, 4 Aherlow Shaw (m), 5 Dromana Max (m), 6 Farloe Mysterio (w).
