Unfortunately the big freeze doesn't want to go away and consequently we have a reduced horse racing schedule today. Kempton, Warwick and Wetherby have all been abandoned with Fairyhouse, Ffos Las and of course the all weather meetings of Chelmsford, Newcastle and Wolverhampton still set to go ahead.
With what's left, one of the feature races of the day is the 13:45 Fairyhouse, and it seems to be hotly contested. Hunters Yarn (4/1) for Willie Mullins currently heads the market and perhaps rightfully so. He has won 4 of his 10 starts on the ground, 2 of his 4 starts at the course and 6 of his 13 starts over the distance. We also can't forget he has Paul Townend on board who has a 53win% at Fairyhouse over the last 3 months. He has some record there.
Next in the market is American Mike (5/1) for trainer Gordon Elliot who despite having some winning ground and distance form, is yet to bank a win from his 2 starts at Fairyhouse. He has apprentice jockey Carl Millar on board today who is claiming 5lbs. However, American Mike does by far hold the most impressive speed metric last time out, clocking 3.61kph faster than the standard average for that race.
Hunters Yarn and American Mike are well clear on the ratings, but an interesting entry is Midnight It Is (6/1) for trainer Gavin Cromwell who has been bumped up 12lbs in the handicap from his win last time out at Navan. Prior to that he was bumped up 8lbs for his win at Fairyhouse which was also on the soft ground and over the 2m1f distance, matching today's conditions. He's clearly found some form and will be going for the hat-trick today.