'He's good enough to beat them' - Dembe camp confident of another bold show

Thursday: 6.30 Kempton
Unibet 3 Uniboosts A Day Handicap | 1m | 4yo+ | RTV

There are plenty of in-form contenders for this London Mile qualifier and the market just favours Dembe, who went down by a neck under talented 7lb claimer Billy Loughnane just over two weeks ago at Wolverhampton.

The five-year-old was rated just 67 at this time last year before rattling off a four-timer for Brett Johnson and while he lost his form on his next two starts, he returned with a 66-1 third after a break in November and so nearly got the job done last time.

He is 1lb higher now and with Harry Burns only able to claim 3lb, he has more on his plate.

He can break slowly and tends to be held up, which might not work if there isn't much pace on, although Satin Snake and Golden Sands made the running last time.

In between two wins here, Satin Snake was beaten by a short-head, but those races were all over 7f and his few efforts over a mile have hinted at stamina issues.

Aguaplano's last three runs were also all at Kempton and in producing form figures of 123, he has shown himself to be in cracking form. He didn't get the run of the race last time compared to the front two, having been shuffled back from a wide draw, and he may well be the one to beat.

The Thunderer is the difficult one to weigh up. He was a runaway seven-length winner when last seen in the hands of Chris Wall, who has since handed in his trainer's licence.

Ridden by a 7lb claimer that day, The Thunderer has been hit with a 10lb rise, so he's going to need to step up again on his first run for Sean Curran after a 106-day break.
Race analysis by Paul Kealy

What they say

Brett Johnson, trainer of Dembe
I thought he was unlucky last time. He seems to like Kempton and he's in great form so we thought we'd give it a go. I think he's got a little bit more to give. It's not a bad race but I think he's good enough to beat the rest of them. He seems back to his form and Harry [Burns] claims 3lb which also helps, so I think he can do it. We've got a good chance.

Marco Botti, trainer of Aguaplano
He always runs good races at Kempton. He was maybe just a touch unlucky last time, the wide draw meant that he couldn't come across but he still wasn't beaten far. He's in good form and has been consistent, he's always there or thereabouts, so hopefully we'll be a bit luckier and he has a good chance of winning.

Sean Curran, trainer of The Thunderer
He's having his first start for me and I'll know a lot more about him after the race. He can be slowly away but he finishes strongly, and he seemed to win well over 1m3f for Chris Wall. We'll see how he takes the drop in trip, but he's working well at home.

Mick Appleby, trainer of Golden Sands
He ran a bit better at Wolverhampton last time and I think the cheekpieces made a difference. Kempton will suit him as he should probably be better going right-handed. He's in good order.
Reporting by Harry Wilson

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