2009 LADBROKES.COM WORLD SERIES HURDLE BETTING TIPS

Shocked by the late withdrawal of the well-monikered Punchestowns', the Ladbrokes.com World Series Hurdle at Punchestown has had the betting doors swung wide open and this one looks to be taking a dramatic turn towards Fiveforthree in the current antepost market. Listed anywhere in between 5/4 and 11/8, this 7 year-old Irish number boasts a very solid record in hurdles competition with 4 wins, 2 seconds and 2 thirds from 9 career starts. In action at the John Smith's Aintree Hurdle, Grade 1 competition, Fiveforthree put in a solid showing, finishing up a respectable second to Solwhit. He's got a very solid record with Ruby Walsh on top garnering three wins from 5 with the venerable Irish jock. Fair Along is listed at around 8/1 and he's a solid runner, third place in the antepost market, but there's a lack of winning form here in the past few months. Albeit that lack of form comes at the expense of three straight losses to the exceptional Big Buck's. If you go back to Fair Along's most recent wins, you'll see Cheltenham triumphs over Don't Push It and Powerstation. He's got their number and I fancy him to top Powerstation (5/1) again.Another horse worth taking a look at is the well-respected Brave Inca. He finished an extremely disappointing 18th in the Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham, but came into the race with some decent results. He's a quality runner and is set to be a bet for the show tickets. I don't think he'll be able to outperform Fiveforthree, but this horse knows a thing or two about Grade 1 victories and that makes the difference here. Three very exciting horses have pulled out of the race. They include the aforementioned Punchestowns, Mikael D'Haguenet and Quevega. PREDICTION1. Fiveforthree2. Fair Along3. Brave Inca