1:28 Uttoxeter Tips

House of Habsburg is being turned out quickly under the same mark after only being beaten by a head into second place at Warwick eight days ago. He is due to go up six pounds shortly.

Hill Of Tara won four times over hurdles, though is still to win after four starts over fences. She did, however, run her best race last month when fourth at Exeter. She has been dropped 2 lb and, having won three times on heavy ground over hurdles, she looks a good each-way bet here with four places on offer.

This seven-year-old gelding, trained by Gary Hanmer, is a bit of a dark horse as he switches attention to fences. He arrives here in consistent form over hurdles, having posted back-to-back third-place finishes recently. His latest effort at Wetherby (November 26) was particularly encouraging, where he stayed on well to finish third of seven over 3m. Personally, I think his size and scope suggest he could actually make a better chaser than hurdler. He races off a mark of 94, and with Benjamin Macey claiming a valuable 7 lb, he is effectively carrying a very manageable weight. Track & Trip The 3m trip (approx. 3m 10y) at Uttoxeter is a proper stamina test that should suit him down to the ground. His recent run over 3m at Wetherby proved he gets the distance well. Uttoxeter can be a grueling track when the mud flies, but his recent consistent efforts suggest he is hardy enough for a good run. At double-digit odds, he could be the type of unexposed chaser that often pops up in these events.