Ladbrokes’ Dan Skelton talks us through his Saturday runners

Starting with the International Meeting at Cheltenham, I run Nube Negra in the 12.10. We are very happy with him.

He re-opposes the horse that he beat at Market Rasen but with a six pound swing back in his rivals favour, they’re very evenly matched.

There is probably only a good jump between us. If Apple’s Shakira goes and performs like she did the last day, we’re all playing for second.

We chose Cheltenham, because the race at Doncaster looks like it’s going to be a really competitive affair so I just thought come to Cheltenham and see where we stand.

Ch’Tibello runs in the International Hurdle at 15.05. He’s obviously a high class hurdler, he’s won a good £100k race at Haydock last season, and he deserves his place in the line-up.

He gets 6lbs off a couple too. With him, we’ve just got to get stuck back in there and see where the land lies with him this season.

Momella will run in the Mares Handicap Hurdle at 15.40. She’ll get a little bit of weight in that. She was second in a Grade 2 at the last meeting over two-and-a-half miles.

She’ll obviously be strongly fancied in the betting because of what the horse that beat her, On The Blind Side, has done since. I hope she will be very competitive as she seems well at home.

At Doncaster, One For Billy starts us off in the first at 12:00. He was due to run last week at Huntingdon but that was called off. I’d like to think he’ll be competitive again in a track that should suit.

We run Mohaayed in a handicap hurdle at 13.40. He didn’t run at all in the Greatwood for whatever reason. We don’t really know why but we think it could have been down to the ground.

I didn’t want to make an excuse going into the race but I can only think that that was the reason. He goes here on a bit better ground and we’ll see how he gets on.

Ignore that last run and he’s going to be a big player here.

I run Virgilio in the 15.20, where Bridget Andrews rides him. I think he will like the track; and he will definitely like the ground.

Whether he is too high in the handicap or not, we will find out tomorrow. He has certainly sharpened up from his first run anyway and I’m very happy with him.

At Hereford, we’ve just got Work In Progress in the 14.05. It has rained and snowed more than he’d ever want really but it will be loose ground, rather than tacky.

Looking at all three in that race, none of them really want it soft so they are all equally disadvantaged!

Dan