HOPES are high that Hellvelyn (3.00) can recapture his top-class two-year-old form in this afternoon's Beverley Bullet Sprint.

One of the fastest juveniles seen out last year, Hellvelyn wasn't for catching once jockey Ted Durcan asked the colt to go for gold in the prestigious 2006 Coventry Stakes at Royal Ascot.

Trainer Bryan Smart has been very patient with the flying grey this term, his sole start coming when taking on the older generation to finish a creditable eighth in Newmarket's Group 1 July Stakes.

After such a long absence Hellvelyn was entitled to be ring-rusty, however he still ran a blinder and given normal improvement fitness-wise, looks good for the five-furlong dash.

Channel 4 are covering the £50,000 Tote-sponsored Heritage Handicap, in which Record Breaker (3.35) is the each-way recommendation.

Mark Johnston's representative was always sitting pretty on the heels of the leaders at Pontefract last Sunday, it was just a case of when rider Greg Fairley decided to unleash his mount.

Fairley waited as long as he dare, but satisfyingly the response was immediate because the second he let off the handbrake, Record Breaker (3.35) shot clear of his rivals in a matter of strides.

Fairley and partner have been gifted a fantastic draw in stall 15, so similar tactics might well result in a carbon-copy victory for the improving Middleham-based three-year-old.

Few six-year-olds boast a better than 50 per cent win/run strike-rate but that's precisely the scenario for Goodwood Celebration Mile candidate Cesare (3.10), triumphant in eight of his 15 career runs.

Cesare's most recent win came at Ascot, where despite being stopped in his tracks, he still had the speed to switch away from trouble and rout his plodding opponents.

The preceding Group 3 Prestige Stakes features two fillies straight out of the top-drawer, Sense Of Joy and Muthabara (2.35).

The muscular Sense Of Joy could easily be mistaken for a three-year-old colt, size and scope she put to scary effect with a searing five-length Newmarket debut success.

Although taking on John Gosden's quality juvenile might seem folly, John Dunlop could possibly have an even better youngster in the shape of Muthabara.

Unbeaten in two outings to date, Muthabara showed an exceptional level of acceleration when walloping a double-figure field in a Listed event at Sandown.

Tom Dascombe is beginning to make quite a name for himself in the training ranks, ably aided and abetted by the likes of Ishi Adiva (3.45).

"I really do believe she's a Listed class filly," said Dascombe, who must fancy his chances with Ishi Adiva in the South Coast Handicap, a contest which is at least one notch below pattern-race standard.

Dascombe's three-year-old put in a solid-enough run when fifth at Haydock last time, form franked when the seventh home, River Falcon, won at this week's Ebor Festival.

Barry Hills has his horses in superb nick at present, so it might be worth having a dart with Newmarket-bound Thabaat (2.20), even though the Lambourn raider has been absent for 107 days.

Having won in a common canter at Folkestone in April, Thabaat's fortunes then took a dramatic nose-dive by finishing last of nine on a fruitless visit to Chester.

Such is the fickle and fragile nature of the thoroughbred breed it's generally worth forgiving at least one bad day at the office, so surely there's little point in writing off Thabaat just yet.

Having tipped Balthazaar's Gift to lift the Stewards' Cup at Glorious Goodwood, it was painful viewing to watch him making hand-over-fist late headway in a totally lost cause.

Luca Cumani's sprinter simply couldn't lay up with the early leaders that day, an excuse which certainly won't wash on today's much slower surface for the Countrywide Steel Hopeful Stakes.

Jumping fans get their slice of the action at Cartmel, where Im Spartacus (4.25) has an ideal opportunity to atone for a woeful performance when backed off the boards at Market Rasen.

The Evan Williams-trained market leader was maybe biting off more than he could chew, however the Audi Handicap Hurdle is less demanding and a recovery mission is by no means out of the question.