Horse racing betting: Stan James Christmas Hurdle

The Stan James Christmas Hurdle was hard enough to fathom in advance without punters having to work out which of Noel Meade's runners to side with. Ante-post shows from the sponsors suggested that Harchibald, with just one victory in his last four runnings, was the one most likely to line up, and Stan James made him an early 8/11 shot. Click here for a free £25 to bet on the Christmas Hurdle with Stan James Meade, however, was scheduled to run last year's winner, Jazz Messenger, along with new kid on the block Aitmatov, who has won his three races this season, but both give this race the swerve for other engagements. At 8/11 with Stan James, Harchibald looked far too short, but faced with just five other rivals, that price looks fair. His performance at Newcastle in the Fighting Fifth Hurdle when despatching Al Eile and Katchit was of the highest order and there is no disagreement from here that he is one of the most talented, if frustrating hurdlers around at the moment. The trouble is, he is a similar price to Kauto Star in the King George, which follows this race - a horse, who it must be remembered, has won seven of his last eight races. Harchibald is no way near as superior to this field as Kauto Star is to the King George line-up and those who don't like betting at odds-on have a good reason to let this one go. To highlight the pitfalls of betting at such odds in this race, Straw Bear was the 4/6 favourite to take this contest last year but he is now a 7/1 chance to make up for that under-par effort. Nick Gifford's six-year-old finished a tame fourth to Jazz Messenger last Boxing Day and tailed off markedly behind Osana last time out at Cheltenham in what used to be known as the Bula Hurdle. Recovering from such an ordeal to feature highly in a race as testing as this could be beyond Straw Bear, but if any jockey can coax what is needed out of the JP McManus-owned gelding, then it is regular partner AP McCoy. Straw Bear would be worth considering if he was in better form - he has beaten Afsoun and finished close to the ill-fated Detroit City in the past - and although he has had excuses for several of his defeats over the last 12 months, it is difficult to come up with concrete arguments to place your hard-earned money on him in this Christmas face-off. On the face of it, second-favourite Punjabi looks too short as well having struggled to match the smart Katchit at Cheltenham and Aintree last season, but given his connections, he could be dangerous. Trainer Nicky Henderson and jockey Mick Fitzgerald teamed up to land this race in 2000 and 2001 with Geos and Landing Light respectively. Not seen out since April, he would have to be at his very best to have even a hope of over-turning Harchibald. David Pipe's Acambo looks the most solid choice of the outsiders, at at 16-1 would rate a sportsman's wager. Timmy Murphy's mount has been seen out chasing recently and although that was always the plan, the small field, and big prize money, has tempted Pipe to aim his charge at this contest. Acambo won last season's Ladbroke Hurdle, and if we are going to go back through the archives, the six-year-old found Straw Bear eight-legths too good back in January 2006. The fact that the gelding was conceding 8lbs to today's rival highlights their potentially similar ability and the double-figure price can give punters something to at least cheer on. Verdict: 1pt Acambo @ 9/1 (Stan James) Click here for a free £25 to bet on the Christmas Hurdle with Stan James