THE Dublin Racing Festival is the main lead through the weekend and what a card they have measured up for us this afternoon, with no less than four grade one events and two Listed handicaps, one over hurdles the other over fences.

The ground will also play a part with the Dublin track having endured 110mm of rain through the last two weeks which left the turf waterlogged going into this week. That dire position has since been arrested and with light showers forecast for Friday and Saturday at the time of writing, the positive is we should have a wet surface which the horses should be able to gallop through as opposed to a drying one where they would be stuck in the mud.

The Juvenile Hurdle at Leopardstown (1.50) looks a straight shoot out between Gordon Elliott and Willie Mullins with three runners apiece, Gavin Cromwell has the seventh entry in courtesy of North Shore.

Current Triumph Hurdle ante-post favourite Narciso Has slammed North Shore by 11 lengths over the course and distance at Christmas, but I’m not sure that was the best renewal of that Grade Two. He has three lengths to find with his market rival here, Mange Tout on previous Fairyhouse form. 

Like the Elliott runner, Selma De Vary gets the handy fillies’ allowance and could be anything based on her French form making her Irish debut, which to leads me to the value call possibly being the Mullins’ third string in BERTUTEA. 

Placed in Listed races in France, his best run there was a staying on two-length second behind Midnight Cowboy, who has since been placed in a pair of Grade Three events.

The bay gelding then improved significantly on his Irish hurdling debut when noticeably hurdling cleanly when beating Crooked Path by nine lengths at Limerick seemingly handling the heavy ground with ease. Three of those in behind have run moderately since, but the third home, Dawn Coming, gave the winner a boost when chasing the smart flat recruit The Reverend to four lengths at Cork and time may tell that was a pretty solid performance taking on the older horse.

The Grade One feature is of course the Irish Gold Cup (3.30) with almost the exact field returning from the Leopardstown Christmas Chase on December 28th when Affordable Fury upset the 6/5 favourite Galopin Des Champs.

The last named ran as if he needed the run, but there was no fluke in that winning run and of course the Noel Meade-trained runner is still open to improvement over this trip as this only be his eighth chase start. The one question mark is him getting home on heavy ground over three miles.

The classy mare Spindleberry will be trying to retain her unbeaten record over fences and could be the dark horse here, having won five from five against the girls, but the each-way value here surely lies with the more exposed staying warriors. I Am Maximus was a staying on second that day and although like a few of these, Willie will be working back from the Aintree Grand National, there is no reason why he shouldn’t return to that sort of form here with the only slight negative being his best form has come on better ground, a remark that applies to the fourth home Grangeclare West, albeit to a slightly lesser extent.

So I am going to have an each-way play on the staying on fifth MONTY’S STAR who relishes deep ground. Henry De Bromhead has always said that he didn’t have the nine-year-old right last year, but that second run of the season should have put him spot on for this with the hope that this will be his seasons’ peak run.

SANTO SOSPIR (1.15) could well be the call going up to an extended two-and-three-quarter miles in the opening Novice Hurdle. He is bred to stay this far and more and apart from jumping to the right at Clonmel, I loved the way he went through that contest. Likely favourite Doctor Steinberg will be one of those to the fore from the off here and his win in the Grade Two Navan Novice Hurdle has since been cemented by the second home landing the River Don at Doncaster last week.

In receipt of seven pounds, the mare KARGESE is taken to have too much toe in the closing stages for Romeo Coolio in the Goffs Irish Arkle Novice Chase at 2.55. It is a rather shameful turn out of three for this valuable contest and begs the question why more riders from Britain don’t take on the Dublin challenge.

Of the two big field handicaps on the card, the three-mile Listed Handicap Hurdle at 2.25 offers some appeal to each-way backers with extended place terms sure to be offered by the old enemy.

Duke Silver showed a nice turn of foot to win over the course and distance at the Christmas meeting, but this is a deeper race on more severe ground and he will do well to hold off some strong stayers. Wendrock steps up from two-and-a-half miles and would be interesting if seeing this out, he finished just behind Saint Le Fort that day who also comes into the equation. 

But this could turn into a right old slug-fest and the one assured to get home in the conditions has to be HE CANT DANCE. Elliott was very disappointed with him at Galway, but he has begun to make solid progress since then, catching the eye over two-and-three-quarter miles at Navan last time out. He will relish this step up and has a lovely opening mark of just 125 here.

At Sandown Park I am really sweet on the chance of bottom weight HUNTER LEGEND in the book ending three-mile handicap chase at 3.42. The nine-year-old will have the services of 5lbs conditional Lucy Turner, which means he will be in receipt of 31lbs from the admirable top weight Mr Vango.

The best bet at the two-day Musselburgh meeting could be the old boy TOMMY’S OSCAR (2.20) in the Scottish Champion Chase.