Wetherby, Lingfield and Naas

Although the best racing today is clearly at Sandown and Wetherby, the other meetings are not without interest. At the Irish N.H. meeting at Naas, there is also a big Cheltenham hope on view, Captain Cee Bee (Eddie Harty/ Mark Walsh), who runs in the novice chase at 15.10 CET. Had he not fallen 2 out, he would have given Sizing Europe a fight last time and if he stays on his feet this time, he can hardly lose here. There are only 5 runners in this race, but otherwise there are huge fields. However they say the bigger the field, the bigger the certainty, end we therefore regard Grey Soldier (Gordon Elliott/ Davy Russell) as a good bet in the maiden hurdle at 14.40; he faces 24 opponents, but last time he was runner-up to the smart Rite of Passage and this form must surely suffice here.

At Wetherby, th Grade Two novice chase at 15.50 is th main event but hs only 4 runners. It looks between Weird Al (Ian Williams/ Paddy Brennan) and Knockara Beau (George Charlton/ Jan Faltejsek); when they met at Cheltenham in November Weird Al came out on top, but the weights now favour his rival. If the ground is not too soft, ex-German Donaldson (Jonjo O´Neill/ Richard McGrath) would have a decent each-way chance in the 2 1/2 mile handicap chase at 15.20.

Betting forecast:
1. Race: Shadrack - Am I Blue - Wednesdays Boy
2. Race: Babysitter - Monogram - Black Apache
3. Race: Battlecry - Flake - Frankie Figg
4. Race: Weird Al - Knockara Beau - Mumbles Head
5. Race: Terenzium - Dancing Dik - Bold Ransom
6. Race: I See A Star - Nadover - Dix Villez
7. Race: Islamouth - Attaglance - Beside The Fire



Two class 2 handicaps are the top races at Lingfield´s all-weather meeting. They go over 5 furlongs at 1.35, where Nickel Silver (Bryan Smart/ Tom Eaves), a recent Kempton winner, could start favourite but we have a slight fancy for bottom.weight Wotashirtful (James Boyle/ Nicky Mackay), usually a front-runner who has won both his starts at this track. The 1 1/2 mile race at 17.10 looks much more tricky, as 6 of the 8 runners are last-time-out winners. Mark Johnston´s Kings Salute (Joe Fanning) has won both his races so far and could well prove better than this grade and he should win off his relatively light weight.

Betting forecast:
1. Race: Headache - Stanley Goodspeed - Bollywood Style
2. Race: Ginger Grey - Tatawor - Jodawes
3. Race: Lastkingofscotland - Murrin - Ravi River
4. Race: Mrs Boss - Diamond Johnny G - Posy Fossil
5. Race: Nickel Silver - Peak District - Indian Skipper
6. Race: King`S Salute - Mister New York - Paktolos
7. Race: Monterosso - Nubar Boy - Tenacestream