Cheltenham Festival favourites in action

Some really excellent racing today, mainly at Ascot and Haydock with plenty of leading fancies for the Cheltenham Festival in action, including the two favourites for the Champion Hurdle. Willie Mullins send the unbeaten Faugheen (Ruby Walsh) across the Irish Sea to contest the Coral Hurdle at 15.40 CET. If he has any pretensions to the hurdling crown, he should win today, with Lac Fontana (Paul Nicholls/ Nick Scholfield), a son of Shirocco who will be helped by every drop of rain that falls, his main danger. Blue Fashion (Nicky Henderson/ David Bass) is next best, and the rest probably have no chance.

His main rival for the Champion Hurdle is The New Man (Nigel and Sam Twiston-Davies), who runs in the 14.50 at Haydock. He was an unlucky third last year at Cheltenham, but has won 11 of his 16 starts and is clearly right out of the top drawer.,He meets slightly stronger opposition than Faugheen at Ascot, and certainly Melodic Rendezvous (Jeremy Scott/ Tom Scudamore), another one who needs plenty of rain - and looks as oif he is getting it!- and Zamdy Man (Venetia Williams/ Liam Treadwell) both hopeful, while the.lightly-raced 4yo Auror d´Estruval (John Quinn/ Barry Geraghty) is also dangerous in receipt of weight.

Main event at Haydock and the day´ s best race is the Betfair Chase over 3 miles 1 furlong at 16.00, in which several leading Gold Cup candidates line up. Most of these have already met on several occasions: Cue Card (Colin Tizzard/ Daryl Jacob) won last year from Dynaste (David PIpe/ Scudamore) and Silviani Conti (Nicholls/ STD). Menorah (Philip Hobbs/ Richard Johnson) won the Charlie Hall Chase, with Taquin de Seuil (Jonjo O´Neill/ Geraghty) second, Double Ross (N+ STD) a close third, Medermit (Alan King/ Denis O´Regan) fourth and Silviniani Conti (Nicholls/ Noel Fehily) fifth. The last-named started a hot favourite at Wetherby and we shall giver him another chance today, especially with the Nicholls stable now in great form.