Great Cheltenham Mission

The stable has four runners in the big chase at Cheltenham this afternoon at 2.30pm.  Paddy Power hero Great Endeavour bids to add to that success returned to what would appear to be his optimum trip - he will be partnered by Timmy Murphy.  He will be joined by stable companions I'msingingtheblues, Matuhi and Salut Flo.  We also have one runner at Doncaster, Rose Of The Moon who was successful on his debut for the yard last month at Uttoxeter - he will again be partnered by Jake Greenall.

I was watching the racing from Cheltenham yesterday and couldn't believe my eyes when it came to the closing stages of the cross-country race.  I know that it is not your run of the mill race and the layout is a little complex, but no fewer than seven jockeys took the wrong course!  It is about time that these racecourses made the routes fool proof for jockeys - surely they could have had a tape across the course to make sure that they went the right way?  The most surpising part of the whole episode though was that of the seven jockeys, only two were suspended - while clearly a couple may have been carried onto the wrong course inadvertently, I think you would struggle to conclude that five had been...to my mind these jockeys have been extremely lucky to get away with it.  The whole debacle meant that old favourite Garde Champetre (who was well beaten at the time) was left to come home to yet another success - he certainly doesn't need to look at a map of the course as he has been around it so many times that he could probably do it with his eyes shut!  A popular winner, but not a satisfactory result I'm afraid.

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It could be a late night/early morning with British boxer Amir Khan taking on Lamont Peterson in America at 3am.  I could record it and watch it in the morning but one of my mates will no doubt try to tell me the result!  I guess that I either watch it tonight or don't answer the phone or watch television in the morning.

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I will be having my usual double on the football action this weekend and I would suggest that you could do a lot worse than Arsenal at 4/7 and West Brom at 8/11.  I will also be looking forward to Monday night's match between Chelsea and Manchester City - what is more, it is on the box at 8pm...it doesn't get much better than that!