THE general reaction after the running of the opener at Ascot on Saturday, the five-furlong handicap, was that the low numbers were favoured, that that was where the pace was, that the low numbers were always in front, and that the winner, Double Up, was therefore advantaged, given that he emerged from stall six and that he raced on the far side.

However, it may be that Roger Varian’s horse won in spite of his low draw, not because of it. We always hear about the pace in big-field sprints, that the draw advantage will be determined by the pace in the race, not by any variance in ground conditions. And that is largely true these days. However, the pace-setters on one side can go too fast as well as too slow, and that may have been the case here.