The Briefing: going eases to soft at Hexham after inch of rain

A busy evening follows a busy afternoon, with three all-weather fixtures at Kempton, Wolverhampton and Dundalk taking over after the turf fixtures end.

The good news for the jumpers is that, at two of the three tracks racing today, the word 'soft' appears in the going description. The exception is at Warwick, where the novice chase (2.05) and veterans' chase (3.10) have attracted three declarations. Both, however, contain familiar names.

At Chepstow and Hexham there is hardly a single-figure field to be seen, which extends to the occasional joy that is a 4m handicap chase in Northumberland (2.25). Be sure to make a cup of tea for that one.

Going report

Warwick (first race at: 12.30)
Good (GoingStick 7.1 at 8.30am)

Chepstow (12.40)
Good to soft, soft in places (GoingStick 5.8 chase, 5.6 hurdle at 7am)

Hexham (12.50)
Soft (from good, good to soft in places; inch of rain in the last 24 hours; GoingStick 5.1 at 8am)

Kempton (4.10)
Standard to slow

Wolverhampton (4.50)
Standard

Dundalk (5.30)
Standard

Market movers

1.20 Hexham 1 Blottos 8-1 (from 12)
3.45 Warwick 10 Lunar Baby 8-1 (from 12)
4.10 Kempton 2 Glendun 8-1 (from 16)

What to back

Maddy Playle selects a bet for Kempton this evening . . .

What to read

Nico de Boinville faces a race against time to be fit for Saturday's Betfair Chase, but there is a super sub waiting in the wings to ride Might Bite.

There is also the prospect of another top-class clash in the north a week on Saturday.

What to watch

It is a big couple of weekends for champion trainer Nicky Henderson. Here are his thoughts on a few stable stars . . .

The best of Racing Post Sport

Expect goals when Salford take on Shrewsbury for the second time in the FA Cup.

Steve Palmer offers his expert insight for the World Cup of Golf.

Final thought

Naturally the excitement is building around Saturday's superb-looking renewal of the Betfair Chase, but the boost to Newcastle in seemingly securing Buveur D'Air and Samcro for the Fighting Fifth is arguably bigger. At 5-2 and 9-2, they are taking up more of the Champion Hurdle market than Might Bite (6-1), Native River (7-1) and Thistlecrack (33-1) are in the Gold Cup.

For the freshest betting advice, based on latest going and market conditions, don't miss the Live Tipster every afternoon. Just click Raceday Live at racingpost.com or the mobile app