World Hurdle: (3.20 Thu) Latest Odds

Big Buck’s – 8/11 Boylesports
Gunning for his fourth win in the race and his 16th in a row, he is simply a brilliant horse. If you were looking for chinks in his armour, you could argue that he has endured harder races than usual in the build up to Cheltenham. In Oscar Whisky, he is also facing his toughest challenger to date. 

Oscar Whisky – 5/1 Bet365
Billed as Big Buck’s main rival, he enjoys a tremendous success rate over hurdles, with 7 wins from 10 starts. However, he’s only triumphed once at Grade One level, losing twice. He tackles 3-miles for the first time in his career.

Thousand Stars – 9/1 William Hill
A similar profile to Oscar Whisky, although he has won over 3m2f in the French Champion Hurdle. Has mainly been campaigned at 2-miles this season and like Oscar Whisky he might turn out to be best at the intermediate distance of 2m4f. The pair finished within a neck of each other at Aintree last year at the trip.

Best of the rest: Smad Place (33/1 with Boylesports) has shown promise and Alan King isn’t averse to throwing a five-year-old into the World Hurdle, having succeeded in placing such horses in the past. Mikael D’Haguenet (66/1 with Coral) has been on a recovery mission this season, winning three times, and might still fullfill his potential. Voler La Vedette is the selection for our racing expert, buoyed by her Grade One win at the Hatton Grace Hurdle in December.