Horse racing betting: PartyBets.com Handicap Chase

The speedsters line-up for Sandown's two-mile handicap in the PartyBets.com Handicap Chase at 2.05pm on Saturday. Chasing the £15,657 in prizemoney, trainer Venetia Williams has entered two, although whether Bleu Superbe and Jericho III have quite the pace to succeed remains to be seen. Click here for a Paddy Power Poker $600 bonus when you join Blue Superbe won his first race back in November 1998 and at the age of 13, it is surely too much to ask the old boy to win a two-miler especially with Sandown's punishing finish. Jericho III is only two years younger and although he won a two-mile chase back in November 2006, this looks much tougher than the Parker Steel handicap at Folkestone that he won. Top-weight Pablo du Charmil won the Haldon Gold Cup at Exeter for instance, beating the likes of Fair Along, Hasty Prince and Royal Shakespeare. It was a massive effort to win that racer, and the hard work he put in that day looked like it took its toll when he flopped next time out at Ascot. Pablo du Charmil finished 33 lengths behind Paul Nicholls's Hoo La Baloo that day, and he also failed to get his customary easy lead. Running under the same weight will be Howle Hill, who impressed at Ascot last time out when winning the Amlin 1965 chase. He also finished ahead of Royal Shakespeare, who may also have been feeling the effects of his efforts in the Haldon Gold Cup. Howle Hill may be better known to punters as a hurdler, but his record over fences is now three from three. The handicapper clearly has been paying attention too, because he has hiked him up the weights. Despite this handicap, he should run well and it is unsurprising that Betfair punters make him their second favourite at 3/1. Early market leader is Master Minded, and considering he is trained by Paul Nicholls and ridden by Ruby Walsh, that is hardly surprising. The youngest horse in the field at five, he has been recruited from France where he spent his career at Auteuil, racing on soft surfaces. On his first start over fences over here, Master Minded unseated super-sub jockey Sam Thomas early on when 8/13 favourite for a four-runner affair 16 days ago. Walsh has actually ridden this horse before, when trained by Guillaume MacCaire, and the duo finished second in a Grade 1 chase in May. If he gets around, he will be a danger to all, but surely 11/4 on this Good to Soft going is too short a price for what he has shown so far. Calatagan looks the most attractively priced of the lot. He looked in super form when winning the Castleford Handicap Chase at Wetherby on December 27th. He was rated 6lbs better than when winning last year, and despite conceding years to some of the principals, he certainly isn't short of talent. Verdict: 1pt Calatagan (Paddy Power) Click here for a Paddy Power Poker $600 bonus when you join