NAYATI CAN RASEN THE ROOF

Nayati can keep his unbeaten record since arriving in Britain intact in the In Play Betting At 188Bet Handicap Hurdle at Market Rasen tomorrow.

With a total prize fund of almost £22,000 up for grabs, it is no surprise a strong field has been assembled for the feature event in Lincolnshire.

The Alan King-trained Nayati is one of two fouryear-olds in the field and while his lack of experience is a clear negative, the upside is he remains very much unexposed.

The French import made a fine start for his new connections when impressing on his hurdling debut at Newbury in December, looking another high-class juvenile prospect for his trainer.

He was odds-on to follow up at Ascot last month and it is fair to say his supporters got very lucky, with Nayati booked for minor honours until the race changed dramatically when one horse fell and the other was brought down at the final flight.

While in many ways that effort was disappointing, it was encouraging that he managed to see off subsequent winner Oistrakh Le Noir on the run-in and it is very likely that King’s charge will be suited by the less demanding conditions he will encounter.

He needs another run and probably a rise in the handicap to earn himself a shot at the Fred Winter at Cheltenham next month and he can keep his Festival dream alive with another win.

The Bet Now At 188Bet Novices’ Chase looks a straight match between Captain Chaos and Ozzy Thomas and the latter gets the nod.

Captain Chaos is enjoying a fine debut season for Dan Skelton, winning twice from four starts, but he is sent into action just a fortnight after a tough race in the Towton at Wetherby.

The Henry Olivertrained Ozzy Thomas, on the other hand, has not been seen in competitive action since October, so he should have the edge in terms of freshness.

The mud will be flying at Ffos Las, but that should not bother Scorpion Sid too much in the opening British Stallion Studs EBF “National Hunt” Novices’ Hurdle.

Behind Time has plenty in his favour in the Professional Security Management Ltd Handicap Chase.