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Radium Will Be In His Element
Another significant weekend for racing as the build up and anticipation towards the Cheltenham Festival grows. Unfortunately it was for the wrong reasons that racing made the headlines this weekend. I’d like to start this week’s article by saying my thoughts are with the connections of both horses, and may we all move on from this terrible event.

Unbeaten Champion Hurdle candidate PEDDLERS CROSS aims to continue his unbeaten record when running in the Victor Chandler Morebattle Hurdle at Kelso on Thursday. Donald McCain plans to run his stable star in the race after he missed his previous engagement due to a minor setback.

The 2007 Champion Hurdle winner Sublimity is being sent over for the £15,000 race, and trainer Robbie Hennessy is rather bullish about his horse’s claims; "I've never been to Kelso but I'd say it's 99% that we'll be there next week. Everything I run in Britain seems to do quite well and we've been lucky enough to pick up a bit of prize-money.” Although Zaynar lost this race en route to his Champion Hurdle race when going off the 1/16 favourite, Peddlers Cross appears to be something special. The ease with which he won the rescheduled Fighting Fifth hurdle at Newbury illustrated his class, and he should be too strong for this field.

RADIUM has a fantastic chance of opening his account over fences when going to Ffos Las for the Dunraven Windows Novice Chase. He was unlucky to be brought down in his last race at Cheltenham in December, and the form has had an almighty boost with Wishfull Thinking and Spirit River both winning comfortably since. Radium is rated 11lbs better off at the weights than any of his prospective rivals, and with stable jockey Barry Geraghty set to ride, he has a massive chance.

A horse that is definitely worth another look and is entered to run at Punchestown on Thursday is the Edward O’ Grady trained CASH AND GO. He hacked up on his debut last week in testing ground at Thurles, entering the betting for the Champion Bumper at the Cheltenham Festival for which the prices have been snapped up and he is now as low as 12/1, from 25s. Cash and Go is from the same connections as the Champion Chaser Big Zeb, and after proving he relishes heavy ground, could well be turned out quickly to good effect.

An outsider that has a good each way chance is the HEEZ A STEAL, who runs in the 2.40 at Kelso in the Lloyd Vaderstad Handicap Chase. Trained by George Charlton, Heez A Steal made a game return after a 253 day absence in a Catterick handicap last time out finishing fourth at 40/1. He has finished in the first four in his last 12 runs, winning three, has course and distance form, all of which point to him running a big race at a good price.

Jack Milner

Selections Summary

Wednesday 16th February

Cash and Go 4.10 Punchestown 2pt Win

Thursday 17th February

Radium 3.40 Ffos Las 3pts Win NAP

Peddlers Cross 3.50 Kelso 2pt Win

Heez a Steel 2.40 Kelso 1pt EW

The Totesport Trophy is the feature of a strong weekend of racing and is one of the strongest handicap hurdles of the season. A bumper field is expected, and with currently 23 horses declared, this means just one thing, value! This week’s first tip will single out GET ME OUT OF HERE to do the business here once more, after winning the 2010 running of this race. The horse will have the champion jockey AP McCoy aboard, who relishes and excels in races such as this. Get Me Out of Here won last year’s renewal before going onto finish a close second behind Menorah in the Supreme Novices Hurdle. He has run twice already this year, and has travelled very well before tiring near the end of his races, so the form figures of 67 do not tell the entire picture. The first race was after a 228 break, and provoked debate and the questionable ride given by AP McCoy, who was very gentle to say the least. The second run two weeks later was again positive before a bad mistake three from home ruined his chances. He will be fresh and raring to go and has the class and the form to win his second Totesport Trophy.

Another horse in the race of great interest is the Nicky Henderson trained SOLDATINO. Last year’s Triumph Hurdle winner had his first appearance of the season in the Holloway’s Hurdle at Ascot three weeks ago and was given a fairly cautious ride from Barry Geraghty. This was still only the horses sixth lifetime run and third in this country. The highly touted youngster cantered into the lead 4 furlongs from home, but the 2miles 3 furlongs trip proved his undoing, and this trip should be ideal. Wit the previous run working off a lot of rust, the horse will have had the ideal preparation, and at the current price of 10/1, is in with a fantastic chance.

FRENCH OPERA runs in the Grade 2 Game Spirit Chase in the 3:00 at Newbury and given the field size is a very good each way chance. Since switching to fences the horse has an outstanding record with four wins and a second from 6 starts. The only unplaced outing was on his reappearance this season after a 266 day absence last month at Sandown, where he finished 34 lengths last of Cornas who also runs. However the horse blundered and made a bad mistake four fences from the finish when he was making headway. Woolcombe Folly is the deserved favourite due to his wins, and the style of his wins this year, posting a more impressive speed figure than Master Minded, but he is vulnerable.

My final selection is at the rearranged Leopardstown meeting, which will now take place on Sunday. There is a tremendous card on offer with four Grade 1 races. The most illustrious of which is the Hennesy Gold Cup, where my tip JONCOL is bidding to make it back-to-back victories. The horse’s trainer Paul Nolan has said the horse is in prime shape and is extremely confident that his stable star is in even grander order than when getting up on the line to better of Cooldine, winning in the end by a neck. This season the horse finished a good third in the Lexus Chase won by Pandorama, however this has been the horses main aim for the season, and with the Paul Nicholls trained Pride of Dulcote in the race, there is nothing else left that should be able to trouble the 8 year old.

Joncol 3.50 - 2pts win
Get Me out of Here 3.35 - 2pts win
Soldatino 3.35 - 1pt ew
French Opera 3.00 - 1pt ew