Hugo's Restaurant Barbados Trophy Handicap Chase (Grade 3)

ASO won at Chepstow last time out with On Tour trailing in his wake and he’s run well at Cheltenham before. He can make some mistakes over fences, but deserves to be given a good chance around a course that he handles well. The same could be said of his stablemate Tenor Nivernais who has run eleven times here and although he is yet to score at the course, he has run some sound races. One who won’t want any overnight rain is Thomas Crapper who probably should have won more than once over fences. He’s still well handicapped on the best of his form but softer ground would be a worry. Buywise, Royal Encore and Fox Appeal have all had their jumping issues and there's a fair chance that mistake will be their undoing. That said, Buywise generally manages to overcome his fencing deficiencies to run into a place. It’s hard to know what to make of Walk In The Mill who emerged from the Wincanton fog to run out a wide margin winner last time out. Shantou Flyer carries top weight and will need to improve again on his New Year’s Day win; if he does then he will deserve the Gold Cup and Ryanair entries that he currently has. 1. Aso 2. Walk In The Mill 3. Tenor Nivernais