Newbury Tips: Legends to the fore?

Newbury's fabulous 2-day meet starts on Friday - fingers crossed! The Grade 1 Berkshire track will inspect at 07.30am, with temperatures plunging all around the country.

Let's keep fingers and toes crossed, and find a couple who can run well for us if we get the go-ahead.

Seven races are planned, touch wood, between 12.10 and 15.35. I'm going for tried and tested here - top connections, at a top venue.

13.50 - Hermes Allen @ 11/8

A classy 2.5 mile novices' chase, bearing the name of the great former multiple-champion John Francome.

If you've a quiet moment watch Francome's ride on the breathtaking Sea Pigeon to win the '81 Champion Hurdle. He's cooler than an Egyptian cotton sheet on a balmy night.

As for our selection, Hermes Allen is a Nicholls/Cobden inmate, and narrowly top-rated with a mark of 148. They're all carrying 11st 4lb so he's got a very slight advantage, but of much greater import will be his jumping and general intensity on the day.

He won here at a very similar trip in December, but after a couple of ordinary subsequent displays had a wind op in April. He must shake off 230 days of ring rust today but with the stable flying (30% strike-rate in the last fortnight), I'm happy to be on board.

This is an intriguing clash and will light the way for several as to how optimistic they can be about some of the season's loftier targets to come.

15.35 - Hyland @ 10/3

From Nicholls/Cobden to Nico/Nicky; a talented, progressive Henderson handicap hurdler bidding for a hat-trick since reappearing in October. This one found the winning habit off a mark of 109 at Warwick in March '22, and finds himself battling for further glory on Friday rated 135.

No easy task then - not a bit of it. Some big yards oppose, but Nicky H loves little more than a winner at his local Newbury track, and I'd rather be with him than against.

His last success was at Cheltenham in this grade, so he's developing into potentially a very nice horse. He's 6 rising 7 so should be coming to an absolute peak in these next 12-24 months.

Needs a career-best, but couldn't be in better hands.

Horse Racing tips, from Betfred Insights.