Date: Saturday 31st Jan 2026Race: bet365 Scottish County Handicap Hurdle (Class 2)If you stare at the Official Ratings for today’s 1.43 at Musselburgh, you’ll see a compressed handicap where the handicapper thinks everyone has a fighting chance. If you look at the HorseRaceBase (HRB) data, however, the race is practically solved for us.This isn’t a…

1:10 Musselburgh – bet365 Scottish Triumph Hurdle (Listed)If you take a quick glance at the market for the 1:10 at Musselburgh, you’ll see a classic “Three-Horse War”. But look closer at the weights and distances, and you’ll realise the bookies might have this wrong.We have a fascinating triangle of form involving Lord, Secret Force, and…

Date: Saturday, 31st January 2026Race: Virgin Bet Masters Handicap ChaseIf you want a lesson in how handicapping works, look no further than the 3.42 at Sandown today. We have a six-runner field that boils down to a brutal physics equation: can a high-class tank give nearly two stone to a progressive young chaser in soft…

Date: Saturday 31st January 2026Race: 3.10 Sandown – Virgin Bet Heroes Handicap HurdleConditions: Heavy (Proper jumping ground)Let’s cut the waffle. Sandown on heavy ground isn’t a race; it’s a war of attrition. The 3.10 is a Premier Handicap over nearly three miles with an uphill finish that breaks hearts. You don’t need a flashy speedster…

Date: Saturday, 31st January 2026Race: Virgin Bet Every Saturday Money Back Handicap ChaseSandown’s railway fences usually sort the men from the boys, but looking at today’s HorseRaceBase (HRB) data, one horse is jumping off the page. If you trust the numbers, the 2.02 isn’t as open as the bookies think.Here is the no-nonsense assessment.The Clear…

Date: Saturday 31st Jan 2026Race: Virgin Bet A Good Bet Novices’ Limited Handicap ChaseFive runners. Soft ground. The Sandown Railway fences. This isn’t a race for the faint-hearted or for those who blindly follow the highest rating.We have a classic tactical affair here, and the data points to one clear outcome.The Selection: Norn Iron (9/4)Forget…

Date: Saturday, 31st January 2026Race: Virgin Bet Daily Extra Places Novices’ Handicap Hurdle (Class 3)Verdict: Bollin Thou to grind it out.Sandown on heavy ground is the ultimate truth-teller. It’s not about speed today; it’s about who can gallop through the bog and still find a leg up that punishing final hill. We have a five-runner…

Race: Virgin Bet Scilly Isles Novices’ Chase (Grade 1)Time: Saturday 14:40Track: Sandown Park (Soft/Heavy)Small field Grade 1s are often tactical nightmares, but today’s Scilly Isles presents a logic puzzle that is easier to solve than the market suggests.We have a field of four. The bookies have priced this as a duel between the Mullins raider…

Race: Paddy Power Irish Gold Cup (Grade 1)Date: Saturday, 31st January 2026If you are backing Galopin Des Champs today, you are betting with your heart, not your head. The bookies have priced the favourite at 6/4 based on his reputation and his victories in 2023, 2024, and 2025. But this is 2026, and the data…

Date: Saturday, 31st January 2026Race: Goffs Irish Arkle Novice Chase (Grade 1)Let’s cut through the noise. The Goffs Irish Arkle has been reduced to a three-runner affair, and in reality, it’s a match race. On one side, you have the data juggernaut in Romeo Coolio; on the other, the seductive trend of Willie Mullins and…