Paul Nicholls Lines Up More Festival Glory On Day 3 With World Hurdle Pair

Paul Nicholls reacted to Willie Mullins' four-timer on the opening day of the Cheltenham Festival by saddling his very own treble on day two of the meeting and the Ditcheat master will aim to bag more glory on Thursday afternoon, as he unleashes a top quality dual-pronged attack in the Ladbrokes World Hurdle, which is the feature race on day three.

The Somerset handler knows what it takes to win the Grade 1 stayers' crown having been the catalyst for Big Buck's' four wins in the World Hurdle, and Saphir Du Rheu will don the same silks as the former dominant staying hurdler, but Nicholls will also be represented by Zarkandar, who is aiming for a second Cheltenham Festival success.

With reigning champion More Of That not taking his chance then there will be a new name on the illustrious crown and with the likes of Whisper, Un Temps Pour Tout and Lieutenant Colonel adding great depth to the contest then it's sure to be cracking renewal, if not a vintage one at 3:20pm.

The action kicks off at 1:30pm and last season's runaway Supreme winner Vautour will be a popular choice for punters in the JLT Novices' Chase as he takes on Ptit Zig and Apache Stronghold, and with Paddy Power offering New Customers 12/1 Vautour then it could be a cracking start for punters.

Don Cossack has been heavily fancied for the Ryanair Chase and Gordon Elliott's charge will aim to land the Grade 1 prize at 2:40pm, but the likes of Balder Succes, Ma Filleule and Foxrock will all be major players in what is a wide open renewal.

It will be a tough punting day with the Pertemps Final and Kim Muir Challenge Cup providing devilishly difficult betting races, but Paddy Power are offering Treble The Odds on any horse that wins at the festival tomorrow for new accounts, so that is sure to prove a popular bet in what is another sparkling day's racing.