Lightly raced candidates need not apply

Focus on those who had tackled hurdles by November and have had a run since Christmas

Eight of the last ten winners fitted both these stats. I wouldn’t argue with anyone who says that the Albert Bartlett is a tough race for tough horses. Lightly raced types who come here very fresh don’t tend to fare well.

Last year’s winner Monkfish had yet to try his hand over three miles before landing this, but all previous winners who had raced over this far recorded a top-two finish. Indeed, pay particular attention to any runner who has already won a Graded race over three miles.

Having won five of the last seven runnings, the Irish are beginning to dominate. For British-trained contenders, look to those with winning form at Cheltenham. There have been nine winners for the home team since this race began in 2005 with as many as eight having won at Prestbury Park that season.

Verdict

The horse who fits the trends best is Farouk D’alene .He won a race at Limerick’s Christmas meeting which has been a top guide to this. However, connections have the better-fancied Torygraph for this, and Farouk D’alene may go elsewhere. Other contenders for the shortlist are Adrimel, Make Me A Believer and Stattler.