COUNT on King Harson (3.20) to reign supreme in this afternoon's most valuable race at Catterick, the £20,000 totequadpot Handicap.

"King Harson is a poor traveller so he could stay near to home and go to Catterick next," said Middleham's James Bethell after seeing his horse blast to an impressive late-April success at Thirsk, where he pulled nearly four lengths clear of a competitive field.

King Harson was only bumped up 6lbs for that spectacular romp, a rise which may not be sufficient to stop the six-year-old going in again, especially as Bethell's powerhouse is ideally suited by today's sharp left-handed track.

Keith Reveley's versatile gelding Hernando's Boy (3.55) appears equally at home over jumps or on the Flat.

Last time out Hernando's Boy breezed to a comfortable victory over the sticks at Kelso; the time before he ran a race full of credit when narrowly out-pointed on the level at Musselburgh.

The form of both events looks rock solid and Reveley has found another excellent opportunity to chip another few quid into the kitty by lining Hernando's Boy up for the mile-and-three-quarter totesport Handicap.

Newmarket's £50,000 Coral Sprint Handicap has attracted a host of progressive speedsters, including Mark Johnston's Spirit Of France (3.45) and Mick Channon's Briannsta, who mugged Mafaheen right on the wire at Hamilton last Friday.

Interestingly Johnston had the option of re-opposing Briannsta with Mafaheen but instead has chosen Spirit Of France, who shaped as if coming right back to his best with a recent fourth at Nottingham.

Spirit Of France is a strong, street-fighting type, just the sort of three-year-old to cope with the demands of a typically cut-and-thrust Newmarket contest in which no quarter will be asked or given.

The closing NGK Spark Plugs Handicap presents a completely different challenge, because stamina, rather than sheer speed, is required for the mile-and-six-furlong contest.

Quite often staying horses are given plenty of time to recover between appearances, although that's not the case for Inchpast, turning out just seven days after running respectably to take third spot behind last Saturday's 5-1 winning nap selection, Far Pavilions.

Inchpast (5.25) made great strides in 2004, mopping up four of his last five races in the style of gelding with big future. Mark Tompkins clearly reckons his four-year-old remains very much in that mould and with the stable in terrific fettle, more success is not hard to envisage.

Carlisle's evening meeting is well up to scratch with several useful customers on show, notably Whinhill House (7.35).

Scotton-based handler David Barker, responsible for the selection, is absolute mustard when it comes to bringing along sprinters. Having cleaned up a good few prizes on the all-weather circuit during the winter, his decision to switch Whinhill House back to turf was totally vindicated when the gelding won in a common canter over track and trip nine days ago.

Deep snow on Sutton Bank in March put Bryan Smart's team a few weeks behind schedule, however they are now in the rudest of health with the likes of Saros (8.05) poised to open his seasonal account.

Saros is real pocket-battleship of a four-year-old, no world-beater, yet capable of paying his way in modest races such as the 0-65 Kempton Park Classified Stakes.

The four-year-old primed himself for the £5,000 affair when second to Thomas Tate's Mission Affirmed at Southwell in April, a performance which suggests he'll now go one better in the ultra-reliable hands of Fergal Lynch.

Aidan O'Brien and Kieren Fallon's dominance of the current crop of Classic races might well be all set to continue at the Curragh with Oratorio (3.55) in the Irish 2000 Guineas.

Oratorio, fourth to stable-mate Footprintsinthesand in the English Guineas, is said to have come on for that run and is eminently capable of getting the best of a fascinating head-to-head with Godolphin talisman, Frankie Dettori's mount Dubawi.

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