A TESTING surface is a distant memory to most of us in what is shaping up into one of the great summers. But the Northumberland Plate meeting at Newcastle managed to serve up some surprisingly slow times, with the Tapeta surface seemingly getting more viscous as the temperatures rose.

That was not the sole reason why the big race itself was won in only 3m 33.56s by Withhold, as a slow pace and fast finish also played its part. The leader – who was Withhold himself – got to halfway 3.8s slower than the leader in the earlier consolation race and the result is that Withhold’s timefigure comes out at only 89.