THE DOUR'S OPEN FOR ANOTHER PIPE WIN

It's hardly surprising that the Cheltenham Festival is all people can talk about, given it is only three days away. But there's still some quality racing taking place today, as Sandown, Wolverhampton and Meydan provide an exciting prelude to the four days of equine heaven that await us.

The main race of the day is Sandown's Imperial Cup (3:10), which has been won three times by David Pipe in recent years. Two of those winners were four year olds, Ashkazar and Gaspara and the unbeaten BIDOUREY will be hoping to add to that list. Although he hasn't beaten a great deal in his races thus far, he couldn't have done it much easier. He won with aplomb over course and distance in his most recent outing, prevailing by fifteen lengths. There's a slight worry that there isn't  that much cut in the ground today but if he can cope with it, he seems to be progressing enough to be able to take this.

Bidourey (foreground)

This race has dominated by horses off fairly low weights in recent years, with the last six winners all carrying less than eleven stone and an Official Rating of 130 or less. Out of the entries at the bottom of the card, John Ferguson's ZIP TOP stood out most. He could be deemed a lucky winner at Southwell last time out when looking resigned for second place were it not for the likely winner falling two out. The most interesting this about him today is that AP McCoy is doing 10-5 to ride him. That is awfully low for him and it would suggest that he thinks this horse, which he has won on twice before, has another big chance today.

Zip Top (right)