A WEEK is a long time in racing and since last Saturday the vibes are getting much more positive about horse racing kick starting again, albeit behind closed doors, within the month.

That will see a shortening of the season with the Classics and the many festivals cramped into about two-thirds of the normal season time, and maybe slightly less.

And that means that the national-hunt season will hit our racecourses straight after the November Handicap and may even overlap with the flat turf campaign.

So I thought it worthwhile to have a look at some of the major jump races which will hit our courses from autumn time and hopefully accompanied by crowds back on track as well.

Next week I will talk about the Ladbroke Trophy at Newbury, but our first port of call is the Betfair Chase which traditionally has a small but select field, just the four ran last year, even though the £1 million bonus has been in play for a few years now.

I suspect that we may well get a bigger entry this time around. At the time of writing the betting is headed by last year’s winner Lostintranslation. The last named is without doubt the right favourite and I couldn’t put anyone off his chance, but my want is to play at a bigger price.

Last year, on the prevailing good-to-soft ground, I just felt that Daryl Jacob went a tad too slow and the extra edge that he normally has on his rivals here on a deeper surface slows his opponents up and that was not in play here.

Turning 10 in 2021, there is no reason to believe that he doesn’t retain the majority of his ability. Eight from 28 over fences and placed in 12 other events, his record at the Merseyside track reads 11112, and if he gets his optimum conditions then he remains a big player on what amounts to a race on home ground for the grey.

However, odds of 7/2 are a little bit on the skinny side for me and there is much better value to be had elsewhere in the market place behind his conqueror last year.

So where is the each-way value? Well I firmly believe that Santini should have won the Cheltenham Gold Cup. Nico de Boinville got it wrong on the day aboard an out-and-out stayer, but in a moderately run race he was not surprisingly caught flat-footed and then his jockey made the mistake of checking him up outside of his rivals at the last fence.

That change of direction lost  ground and he was ultimately beaten by Al Boum Photo. However, I feel that Haydock Park may well not be his cup of tea and 4/1 again looks a wee bit too tight to me.

Stable-mate Champ probably falls under the same category and his fencing still leaves an awful lot to be desired, but he still has time on his side.

With all roads leading to the King George for Clans Des Obeaux and Copperhead probably a Ladbrokes Trophy player it could be that BLACK OP, if he has recovered from his pre-Cheltenham injury, is the dark horse in the entry.

For a nine-year-old he is incredibly lightly raced, just 15 starts under rules and a mere five over the larger obstacles as well as a point-to-point. He still has enormous potential as a staying chaser and if his jumping continues to improve (was pretty moderate on his opening two starts) then with the engine inside he could be a massive improver this season.

Of the other players another Haydock specialist, Lord du Mesnil, could easily hit a place in a small field on deep ground at a big price, while Cheltenham winner Imperial Aura is another on a steep upward curve and is clearly felt capable of reaching the highest level by his shrewd and experienced handler.