Sandown best bet: Ballyadam can challenge Impaire Et Passe and Langer Dan in Select Hurdle

16:10 Sandown: bet365 Select Hurdle (2 miles 5½  furlongs)

Impaire Et Passe appears to hold all the aces here after swerving the Cheltenham Festival to claim a dramatically contentious win in the Aintree Hurdle 16 days ago.

That said, it was the Willie Mullins six-year-old’s first success in four attempts since launching his career with five straight wins, and he could be deemed fortunate to pass the stewards' enquiry after squeezing out Bob Olinger and the re-opposing Langer Dan by a nose and a short head respectively.

Planet Sport Bet Daily Special: Bet £20+ cash on any runner in the race and if Impaire Et Passe wins by more than 8 lengths, get a £5 Free Bet

Langer Dan had won Cheltenham’s Coral Cup with room to spare a month earlier, and receiving a couple of pounds from the favourite could prove significant for Dan Skelton’s eight-year-old here.

However, if improving weights is to be a factor, then Henry De Bromhead’s Ballyadam could prove great value at more attractive odds than the two market principals.

• Suggested bet: Ballyadam in the 16:10 at Sandown

The nine-year-old carried top weight when finishing second last time out in the Coral Cup, and the four pounds she gave Langer Dan in that race has now been reversed into a six-pound advantage, and that 10-pound swing could help make up the 3½-length deficit from Cheltenham.

After missing Aintree he will line up fresher than her two main rivals in the capable hands of Rachael Blackmore, and if Langer Dan is seen a genuine threat to the short-priced favourite, then Ballyadam must surely also merit serious consideration.

Should any of the market leaders falter, there is plenty of star quality elsewhere in the field ready to pounce, with two-time Cheltenham Festival winner Sir Gerhard clearly capable of putting himself in the mix on the big occasion.

Mullin’s second entry has caught the eye of some of Tipstrr’s pundits, as has the Paul Nicholls-trained Blueking D’Oroux, ridden by newly-crowned Champion Jockey Harry Cobden.

In his PlanetSportBet blog, Cobden is cautiously optimistic about his chances aboard the promising five-year-old, and while admitting that he has something to find in this company, he could well outrun his odds in a race he has been trained for.

WATCH: Harry Cobden assesses his Sandown rides in his PlanetSportBet blog

Not seen since coming fifth in the Long Walk Hurdle before Christmas, lightly-raced Blueking D’Oroux had kicked off the campaign with back-to-back wins, firstly at Cheltenham and then in the Coral Hurdle at Ascot in November.

The latter of those successes gives cause for optimism, as he finished a length clear of Strong Leader, who romped to a four-length victory in the Liverpool Hurdle at Aintree two weeks ago, and so could prove to be a significant line of form to bring here.

Each-way punt: Blueking D’Oroux in the 16:10 at Sandown

• Tip advised by TC’s Punts on Tipstrr

 

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