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Scoop Six Preview: Who wants to be a millionaire?

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With a win fund expected of anything up to £5million on Saturday, the Tote Scoop6 has captured the imaginations of punters across the land this week. Here, Timeform take a look at the six races that make up the record-breaking bet, hopefully offering a few pointers to help you make your selections on the way.

All six races are being shown on Channel 4 on Saturday afternoon and although we're deep into the National Hunt season, the Tote have made the puzzle even more trickier to solve by including four highly-competitive races from Lingfield's all-weather card as part of the make up. The dream will be over fairly quickly for some, as the first leg is a fiendishly-difficult looking seven-furlong handicap to get your head round.

2.10 Lingfield

Plenty of familiar faces here as seven of the field have wins over course and distance to their names. My Gacho heads the ratings and he actually improved when scoring at the track on Wednesday, readily going clear from the in-form Mister New York. A repeat of that run under a penalty would see him in the shake-up though consistency has never been his strong point. Capricorn Run won this corresponding race last year, beating Fajr, and is now 5 lb lower in the weights, recent outings don't inspire much confidence, however, and he's never been the most straightforward. Atlantic Story goes particularly well at Lingfield so it would be foolish to leave him out of calculations, while Swift Gift and Majuro are fresher than most of their rivals at this stage of the season, the latter having his first start for Kevin Ryan having left Mick Easterby.
Nobody said it would be easy..

2.40 Lingfield

Leg 2 is a handicap for fillies' over a mile and it's an open-looking affair to say the least. It's difficult to rule any of the twelve-strong field out with total confidence though it may prove wise to side with the lesser-exposed runners, among them the Luca Cumani-trained Jennie Jerome who makes her all-weather debut and has shaped as if we're yet to see the best of her. Four of the field re-oppose having met in a handicap at Great Leighs earlier this month but that was muddling form, a pedestrian gallop developing into a sprint for home though the order remained virtually unchanged throughout, Miss Brown To You getting the better of Spring Goddess, though the fourth horse Izzibizzi is probably the one to take out of the race, shaping as though a greater test of stamina would have seen her in a better light. Her jockey Chris Catlin should make sure a similar scenario won't happen here and it would be no surprise were she to reverse the form. Romany Princess ran well over course and distance on Wednesday and could give another good account with the Champion Jockey booked for the ride.

2.45 Haydock

The first of two jumps races in the Scoop6 and this contains a fair few in top form. Osako D'Airy progressed well over hurdles for Steve Gollings last season and made a promising first appearance for his all-conquering new stable when chasing home The Hollow Bottom in a handicap chase at Aintree last month. There looks to be more races to be won with him over fences and he's fully entited to be one of the market leaders. Glasker Mill made a most promising return from ten months off when fourth to Parsons Legacy at Cheltenham last month. That should have put him spot on for this and represents an owner in Trevor Hemmings who loves having winners at the track. A number of runners have dropped down to attractive-looking handicap marks, none more so than Mon Mome who has plenty of experience of running well in races like this. A return to form wouldn't be a complete surprise.

3.20 Lingfield

Halfway through and a huge pat on the back if you make it this far. It doesn't get any easier though, and up next comes an eleven-runner listed race over a mile and a quarter. Gerard Butler has farmed this event in recent years, winning five of the last eight runnings, his representative this year, however, Baharah is not bred to stay the trip so it may prove profitable to side with those who do have form over ten furlongs. Yahrab is seeking a hat-trick, having won at Great Leighs on his last two starts, while they were both steadily-run affairs he's still unexposed around this trip and shouldn't be underestimated. Bronze Cannon was talked up as a Derby contender earlier in the season, having won a brace of good handicaps over a mile and a quarter at Newmarket. He goes well on polytrack and looked back on the up when third to With Interest last time. Neither of the Richard Hannon-trained runners can be discounted, Mr Aviator a course and distance winner, while there won't be a dry eye in the house should Grand Passion follow up his wins in this in 2004 and 2007 on his trainer Geoff Wragg's final hurrah.

3.30 Huntingdon

Leg 5 is undoubtedly the weakest race of the six, a handicap hurdle over three and a quarter miles, and is largely made up of horses with questions to answer over temperament and/or form. One who ticks all the right boxes though is Heathcliff, one of the most unexposed in the field who looks capable of defying his mark of 90. He looked a thorough stayer on his final start of the 2007/8 season, staying on dourly to finish second to Saucy Bingo under testing conditions at Newcastle. He's left Keith Reveley since and has joined a yard with a good record of improving horses fresh out of other stables. Capable apprentice Ollie Greenall takes off 7 lb and a big run looks on the cards on his reappearance. Charlie Mann's runners continue to do very well and he saddles Rebel Melody who has been a bit disappointing in handicaps but is blinkered for the first time here to sharpen him up. House of Bourbon was well backed prior to his first start for new connections at Fontwell last time and could go well if jumping better than on that occasion.

3.50 Lingfield

A listed sprint over six furlongs ends proceedings much in the same way they begun with the majority of the field in with a shout. Chief Editor has been in fine heart since leaving Mark Wallace, readily winning a handicap at Haydock before running respectably in a listed race on much softer ground at Doncaster behind Icelandic last time. He's up to winning at this level and is two from two on the all-weather. Another with a fine record on polytrack is Ceremonial Jade, who arrives at Lingfield seeking a hat-trick and looks sure to give a good account. Prohibit could be a leading player among the big sprint races on the all-weather this winter, his form went backwards during a busy spell early in the season but he was much improved when winning a minor event over this trip at Great Leighs last time. There's plenty of pace about, Duff is bred to appreciate the switch to polytrack, while last year's winner Maltese Falcon should be all the better for his return earlier this month.