Menorah Back to Hurdles for Cheltenham International

A less than impressive chasing debut for Menorah has seen his connections take the very interesting step of entering him in a high class hurdles contest as they look to get him back to basics to start putting cash in the kitty. Sent off as the slim 8/13 favourite, the six-year-old son of King's Theatre unseated his rider two out after tracking the leaders in three-horse contest.

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Having scored in this fixture last year by a stellar 4.5 lengths, Menorah fans will be able to lock in a good price on the Philip Hobbs-trained gelding. Punters will find him trading around 4/1 with most major bookmakers and he looks one of four who are taking the bulk of the public's coin.

Red-hot Overturn is enjoying a 3/1 listing but is still trading beneath Grandouet, who scored two off the freshening by eight lengths in the Betfair Hurdle at Haydock. It was really one of his better rides and Nicky Henderson will be keen to see the four-year-old progress. He certainly looks the real deal here and boasts five wins from twelve lifetime starts, hitting the board four times.

Interestingly, you'll notice that the betting favourite Grandouet (11/4 with Hills) has never scored at Cheltenham. He did manage to take the 4YO hurdle at Punchestown, which is worth noting as it's a Grade 1 event.

You'll have to wonder whether Overturn can really put the press on this cast and continue his so far unbeaten season. Currently 2/2 with a smashing score in the Fighting Fifth Hurdle earning him a new career-high rating, he also got off the mark just a week prior to that – cantering home by a hefty 27 lengths at Ascot. He looks ready for the big time and Donald McCain will be looking to him to set the tone for his yard early next year.

Brampour is the other major contender here and he is also 2/2 though his victories haven't been quite as impressive. He did manage a Grade 3 score at Cheltenham about three weeks ago and it came against a field of 23 contenders which really puts him in the frame for this one. Paul Nicholls generally always has at least one in the running for contests like these and he's more confirmation that the hurdles contingent are as exciting as ever.

It will certainly be fascinating to watch these four do battle but there are a few interesting outsiders including Sanctuaire at 16/1, Marsh Warbler at 25/1 and Pittoni – who could take a bit of a drop in price from his current standing at 10/1.