PNicholls

Big Buck's brought the house down when winning his third World Hurdle at Cheltenham last month, so let's hope that he can go down the tried and tested route of the past two years and follow up in this race. With a horse like this there isn't much more you can say; namely, he is a superstar and up there with the best I have trained.

Now, there may have been horses in my time here that have been officially rated higher - Kauto Star, Denman, Master Minded and Azertyuiop - but he matches them all for raw talent, and hardness, in my book. And he showed that again at Cheltenham last month; the pace wasn't great so Ruby had him prominent and when he had to find, he did, pulling away again when Grands Crus came to challenge him, idling in victory close home in winning by 1 ¾ lengths.

With the likes of Cross Kennon and Rigour Back Bob so close up, the form cannot be rated highly, but that misses the point; when another horse confronts him, he does not lie down. Just as well when Ruby drops his whip! His phenomenal winning run will probably come to an end at some point - and Grands Crus confirmed at Cheltenham that he is developing into a serious rival, and may be ridden differently here in a bid to beat us - but let's hope it isn't today.

Andy also has Gwanako in the race. After the Cheltenham dawdle, everyone will assume that the horse is in the race to ensure a good pace but let them speculate. He has his finest moment here when winning the Topham in 2008 but admittedly hasn't had things go his way this season, or performed to his best, his fourth at Cheltenham at New Years Day the pick of his efforts. But he takes his chance.

I respect Carlo Brigante and Khyber Kim. The former was a very impressive winner of the Coral Cup and is very progressive, and if Khyber Kim can return to the form of his Champion Hurdle second and Aintree Hurdle win last year then he cannot be readily dismissed. But they have their work cut out here if Big Buck's is firing once again.

To read Paul's personal preview of all his other runners today, including Denman, go to http://betting.betfair.com/horse-racing/paul-nicholls/