Punting pointers: Monsieur Lecoq bids to conquer Sandown again in Imperial Cup

2.25 Sandown
Matchbook Imperial Cup Handicap Hurdle (Grade 3) | 2m | 4yo+ | ITV4

Monsieur Lecoq looks natural for this race

Monsieur Lecoq has looked a natural for this race since he stormed up the Sandown hill to slam Our Merlin by nine lengths on soft ground in January.

A 10lb hike in the weights will clearly make things more difficult, but such was the authority with which he landed that Class 2 handicap he is sure to prove popular with punters.

The Jane Williams-trained five-year-old clearly relishes testing conditions – it was heavy when he won at Ffos Las in December – and he holds two entries at Cheltenham, the Randox Health County Hurdle and Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle.

Our Merlin lively outsider

One of the first rules of punting in valuable handicap hurdles is that you need a horse on the right side of the assessor.

That probably does not apply to Our Merlin, but this proven mudlark will love the ground and has finished a highly creditable second on both his previous trips to Sandown.

Our Merlin: second to Monsieur Lecoq in JanuaryCredit: Mark Cranham

A smooth all-the-way winner at Wincanton in December, Our Merlin is likely to make a bold bid from the front under Bryony Frost – who partners him for the first time – despite being 7lb out of the handicap.

His trainer Robert Walford said: "He’s in good form, but he's not particularly well in at the weights. He likes Sandown though and I’m very happy with the jockey booking."

What they say

Nicky Henderson, trainer of Call Me Lord and Dream Du Grand Val
Call Me Lord is in good form. He has to go right-handed, loves Sandown, and goes in the soft. He has a lot of weight but we’ve nowhere else to go with him. Dream Du Grand Val is only a novice. He won well at Kelso the other day and we thought it was well worth a go. He’s a very professional horse.

Kim Bailey, trainer of First Flow
He should've run over fences by now. We were aiming at a novice chase at Hereford in December, but two days before that race he scoped dirty. The ground hasn’t been right for him since then – he needs it heavy – so we cancelled the chasing plan at the end of January and have been targeting this race since. The ground will be suitable but there’s a big difference between novice company and fiercely competitive handicaps.

Paul Nicholls, trainer of Malaya
She had a couple of unlucky falls before finishing fourth at Ascot last time. She has a nice light weight and I expect her to run well.

Bonus hunting

The sponsors will pay a £100,000 bonus if the winner goes on to land any race at Cheltenham next week. The last horse to do so was the David Pipe-trained Gaspara in 2007, who completed the Imperial Cup-Fred Winter double.

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