Weekend Preview / Timeform / 30 January 2009 / Leave a comment Free £25 Bet

Timeform take an in depth look at a jump-packed weekend of racing...

The focus of this weekend's jump racing action is at Sandown on Saturday.

The competitive Grade 3 totescoop6 Heroes handicap hurdle takes place at 3.10 and amongst the entries are Philip Hobbs' Ballydub, Nicky Henderson's Blue Shark and Paul Nicholls' Otto Des Pictons.

The Champion Trainer is also represented in the preceding race, The Grade 1 Scilly Isles Novices' Chase, by Herecomesthetruth, who faces competition from Araldur and Massini's Maguire in attempting to give his handler a fourth successive win in the race, following the victories of Napolitain, New Little Bric and Silverburn.

Incidentally, New Little Bric appears in the fifth race on the card, a handicap chase, whilst in the opening novice hurdle Optimus Maximus bids to take his record over hurdles to two from two. Last year's Champion Hurdle runner-up Osana makes his seasonal debut in the listed Totepool Contenders hurdle at 2.05. David Pipe's charge shares top weight with Afsoun, while Celestial Halo makes the line-up on his final run before the Cheltenham Festival.

Doncaster also stages jumps action, with the Yorkshire course hosting a six race card. In the 1.25 Chapoturgeon contests the novice chase, and is opposed by Heathcote, The Duke's Speech and Degas Art. The following race, a novice hurdle, sees Philip Hobbs' Copper Bleu bid to further his Supreme Novices credentials, whilst other entries of interest include Emma Lavelle's recent Taunton winner King's Forest and Master Of Arts, a smart handicapper on the Flat who was successful on all his six starts in 2008.

Wetherby is another Yorkshire course to host a race meeting on Saturday and the most valuable race on the card is the 3.25 Grade 2 Towton Novices' Chase, in which participants include Campanero, Kornati Kid, Poker De Sivola and Donald McCain's eight year old Will Be Done, who is bidding for a five-timer.

Irish racing on Saturday comes from Fairyhouse whilst there are two Grade 1 handicaps due to take place in America. The Donn Handicap at Gulfstream Park has attracted ten entries, whilst the Santa Monica Handicap at Santa Anita has drawn eight competitors.

Aside from international action, there is all-weather racing from Lingfield, where Matsunosuke faces seven rivals as he bids for his second win in January.

Sunday sees competitive action from Musselburgh on a card that stages both the Scottish County Hurdle and the John Smith's Scottish Triumph Hurdle Trial. In the former race the weights are headed by Splurge, the field containing the likes of European Dream, Bolodenka, Folk Tune and Mohayer. The latter race at 2.30 contains Giorgio Quercus, Tom Tate's West With The Wind and Sacrilege. Elsewhere on the card, Ferdy Murphy's Kalahari King bids for his third win over fences in the novice chase, having run below his best when second to Doctor David at Haydock on his latest start.

There is also action in Britain from Fontwell on Sunday, whilst at Punchestown Willie Mullins' Mikael D'Haguenet heads the ratings in the Grade 2 Abbey Electrical Moscow Flyer Novice Hurdle at 1.25. Further Grade 2 action takes place an hour later on the card when Big Zeb faces five rivals, including Scotsirish and Mansony in a bid to land the Amazing Thailand Chase. Enda Bolger is never far away where cross country races are concerned and in the 3.35, The P. P. Hogan Memorial Cross Country Chase, he fields the ex-Francois Doumen trained L'Ami, Headsontheground and debutant Zest For Life.