Friday Racing Tips: Realisation looks a Great each-way bet at Cheltenham says Tony Calvin

• 40/1 ante-post tip set to race, now around 10/1
• Kauto and Alvaro came close to being bets
• Tony Calvin is "very happy" with the price of his tip

Very low-key stuff on ITV at Cheltenham on Friday - the two most interesting betting races on the card are the 20-runner handicap hurdles that bookend the card, and they are only on Racing TV - but let's get crack on with what we have got terrestrial-wise.

Happy with ante-post tip Song but Prayers could have the answers

The shape of the novices' handicap chase at 14:20 has changed dramatically as the main ante-post move in the race - and a fairly big one at that, if not necessarily in terms of money traded - was a no-show on Wednesday morning.

I am reliably told Banbridge actually opened at 4/1 in a place on Monday (though Oddschecker is showing 3s as the biggest price laid) and he was cut all the way into 11/10 by Tuesday night, despite having an alternative engagement in the Arkle Trial here on Saturday.

Another example of why you have to heavily factor in double-entries into your ante-post betting.

I put up Stimulating Song win-only at 40/1 to minimum stakes for the race on Monday and it looks like we are at least going to get a run for our money there. He was a mover during the week too (he was 40s in four places), and ended up at a rather defensive 8/1, shall we say, across the board.

I say looks like because I was expecting much softer ground than it is likely to be - and, with a dry forecast here on in, on the back of the official good to soft ground on Thursday morning, I don't think it is a million that we hear the dreaded talk of watering by Friday, or even before - and he is ideally suited by testing conditions, as it was when he won over hurdles at this meeting two years ago.

In reality, the meeting is set to start on good ground on Friday.

Hopefully, he will be allowed to take his chance with the race cutting up from 16 at the five-day stage to just eight, and I obviously hope he dots up off what looks a very workable chase mark of 128 after a pipe opener over 2m at Uttoxeter, but I am not at all inclined to press up at his current odds of 10/1 (and predictably bigger win-only on the exchange by a couple of points).

It does look a pretty winnable race, with three of the eight out of the handicap, so here is hoping, but I thought one of that trio, Unanswered Prayers, 2lb wrong, was sorely overpriced at the opening 7s with the Sportsbook on Wednesday morning.

Unfortunately, plenty of others agreed well before this column went live - in fact, he was cut into 5s by midday that day, and into 4/1 on Thursday morning - so I can't put him up at his current odds, but this ex-pointer could be hard to beat if he jumps adequately on his fencing bow, which is clearly no given around here.

The bang-in-form Chris Gordon made the usual "I am looking forward to send him chasing" trainer noises about him last season and there is no doubt he ran a very promising return over hurdles in the Tote Silver Trophy at Chepstow, a race in which he finished fifth to Knappers Hill.

Obviously, the winner followed up in the Elite last weekend, and the runner-up, sixth and seventh also won on their next starts, so that is red-hot form.

Even from 2lb out of the handicap here, it is not hard to make a case for him being nicely weighted off 126, but I'll let him run unbacked and untipped now, especially as you have to fear the two Irish runners, especially Hereditary Rule.

Sky's the limit for Amarillo if fully tuned up

The Glancing Queen opened up as the Sportsbook's 9/4 favourite (now 5/2) for the 2m handicap chase at 13:45, but it may be worth noting that Alan King said in his Weekender column on Wednesday that she had a "little hold up two or three weeks ago that cost her a few days...and she is just about ready for her reappearance."

She may well win, as she certainly has a very attractive profile, but that is not the kind of thing I would want to be reading if backing her at the current odds.

I was most interested in the claims of Amarillo Sky, who opened up at 9/2 in a place on Wednesday, but I am slightly concerned whether he will be fully revved up here.

In a recent stable tour, Joe Tizzard said he was thinking about running the horse at Aintree (a target he obviously sidestepped, and that is not the first time the stable have changed their mind of late) prior to targeting a "lovely" 2m handicap at Newbury on November 26, and it is fair to say the horse has improved for a run on his two seasonal debuts.

It looks another race I am happy to swerve with that doubt in my mind, even though I was really looking to get with him here.

Riko would be a bet in veterans' chase but for cheekpieces

I thought the seven-runner Grade 2m5f novices' hurdle at 15:30 was a really trappy race with a few too many unknowns for me - Hubrisko was the closest I came to a bet, though his price has shortened a touch, with Music Drive not far behind - so I went looking for a bet in the veterans' chase at 14:55.

Perhaps, I am getting too fussy in my later years - mind you, I was probably moaning about clerks of the courses and going updates, coming out of the womb - but I was all set to tip Kauto Riko before I saw he was wearing cheekpieces.

He wore them four times last season and was decidedly underwhelming on each occasion.

A mark of 137 first time up on decent ground here are probably close to his optimum conditions, and he really should have beaten Two For Gold on his return, sans headgear, at Doncaster last season off 1lb higher mark than this.

I appreciate the horse can be tricky but a stronger ride from Brian Hughes from 2 out surely would have seen him win that with something to spare.

Throw in his excellent fourth in the Paddy Power first time out in 2020, and he has a great chance - but those blasted cheekpieces put me off, and maybe around 5s on the exchange was not that flash a price, either.

I can't see a bet in any of the ITV races.

Alvaro of interest in opener

So the reason I am going up a touch later than usual with this column is because I waited for the two aforementioned non-ITV handicaps to be priced up.

In the opening 2m5f conditional jockeys' handicap hurdle at 13:10, the 9/2 chance Astigar could be thrown in off just 118 - and the Pipe yard have won this race a few times in the past with similar sorts - but the Irish hold a strong hand too, and I thought Alvaro was the most interesting of their seven.

The UK handicapper has given him an extra 5lb (which is generous in the grand scheme of things) and he comes here in good form. He was second to a fair sort at Killarney on his most recent start and the third won at Wexford next time, so I think he has chances here.

He stays well, so a strongly-run 2m5f could suit, especially with a more aggressive ride than last time, in a race in which they probably didn't believe they could beat the winner and rode accordingly.

However, when I was looking at the race without prices I made a note saying "16/1 minimum." So while the 14/1 with the Betfair Sportsbook also includes enhanced place terms, I am going to decline to tip and back him for now and hope for a drift.

20/1 Irish raider can go well in lucky last

The one decent bet I am having on the card is Great Realisation in the 2m87yd handicap hurdle at 16:00.

Ideally, this horse, whose best form on the Flat came over 1m4f, could probably do with a longer trip but, as with Alvaro in the opener, I think the UK assessor has been as kind as he inclined to be by only giving him just an extra 5lb (the other Irish horses in here have been given an extra 7-10lb burdens).

He shaped better than it looked on the Flat at the Curragh last time, as he was poorly positioned towards the centre of the track and was ridden by a very inexperienced 7lb claimer (she was having her first ride on the level this season, in fact) and some of his hurdles form gives him a fair shout.

He stormed home from the rear when second over 1m7f152yd at Ascot last term, and it isn't hard to see him coming home strongly again here on this stiff track, with the expected decent ground in his favour too, though he handles deep ground well if required. I hope he gets a strong pace to aim at.

Trainer Philip Rothwell won this race with a 33/1 poke last season, and his 20/1 shot Singing Banjo was only just touched off from 13lb out of the handicap in the Cross Country at the meeting as well - Rothwell actually won the Cross Country at the Festival with Native Jack in 2006 - and hopefully he has this horse similarly primed.

Again, I analysed this race without prices on Wednesday and I wanted 14/1 to get involved with him. So I am very happy to suggest backing him at 20/1 each-way, five places, with the Sportsbook.

Good luck.