4 jumps meetings today

The best racing today comes from Ireland, where Limerick has a grade 3 race at 16.55 CET and a listed race an hour earlier both for novice mares. The former event should go to For Bill (M Winters/ Davy Russell), who has won 9 of her 12 starts and should be a cut above these opponents. The earlier hurdle race looks more open, with 12 runners, but Willie Mullins and Paul Townend can warm up for Cheltenham by taking this with Dare to Doubt, an easy winner at Naas last time. German-bred Narima (Mervyn Torrens/Mark Darcy) is moving up in grade after an easy win at Navan but could well run into a place.

At Navan too there is a horse running of Cheltenham class - Golden Cyclone (Shark Hanlon/ Andrew McNamara), who runs in the novice hurdle at 16.10. He has won 5 of his 6 starts, and it will be quite a surprise if does not win again here, although Medical Card (Noel Meade/ Paul Carberry) is a possible danger in receipt of 6 lbs. The handicap hurdle over 2 miles 7 furlongs at 17.10 looks quite tricky. Martin Scruff (Gordon Elliot/ Davy Condon) seems certain to start a hot favourite after his very unlucky defeat last time, when he came fast but much too late at odds of 2-1 on, but he has gone up a lot in the weights as a result and is no certainty here.

At Market Rasen, Dineur (Alan King/ Robert Thornton) can finally get his head in front in the novice hurdle at 15.50 after being placed on all 4 career starts so far. Oldtimer Stagecoach Opal (Sue Smith/ Henry Oliver) won at Catterick last time and can possibly follow up in the 3 mile handicap hurdle at 17.25; he meets better opposition here but gets 23 lbs from the likely favourite Pegasus Prince (Keith and James Reveley).

We also expect to see some oldtimers dominate the stayers race at 17.05 at Warwick. Although the ground is drying out, the extreme distance of 3 miles 5 furlongs demands more stamina than is possessed by many of today´s runners, but both 12yo Fine by Me (JS Smith/ Gerald Tumelty) and 11yo Lavenoak Lad (Simon Burrough/ Nathan Sweeney) are CD specialists who could well run much better than their form suggests. Our main fancy here is German-bred Double Handful (Venetia Williams/ Harry Challoner), who has top weight in the handcap hurdle for conditional riders at 18.10; the 5yo, who led the field for a long way in the 2009 German Derby, showed better form last time and meets feebler opposition this time.