'He looks a proper Newbury specialist' - Paul Kealy has three Saturday selections

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Equinus
1.30 Newbury
1pt win

Amarillo Sky
2.40 Newbury
2pts win

Spirit D'Aunou
3.15 Newbury
1pt each-way with firms paying six places

With three winners from four runners since the Dublin Racing Festival, the Willie Mullins bandwagon keeps rolling on and now the most powerful trainer in jump-racing history has set his sights on the Betfair Hurdle (3.15) at Newbury with a horse most of us hadn't heard of until the entries were made.

Ocastle Des Mottes won two of his last three outings in four-year-old handicap hurdles at Auteuil and, although the form isn't strong, he has since been bought by Simon Munir and Isaac Souede and switched to Mullins, and it's not going to be a surprise if he has improved dramatically in the eight months since he last ran.

Allowed to run off his French mark of 133 in Britain, he is actually 6lb higher in Ireland, and there's no doubt you have to give him the utmost respect.

For all Mullins' unparalleled success, however, 2017 Hennessy hero Total Recall remains his only winner at Newbury from 42 runners, although his two seconds came in this race in this decade, and it's only a matter of time before he gets his hands on the prize.

I wouldn't blame anyone for putting their faith in Mullins, but the bookmakers have done enough to put me off with quotes of no bigger than 5-1.

My three against the field earlier in the week were Altobelli, Spirit D'Aunou and Under Control, but I left the latter out because I thought she may well be heading straight to Cheltenham, where she is a course-and-distance winner, for the County Hurdle. However, she was a late non-runner due to the ground.

Altobelli has run two fine races this season, especially last time when third to Luccia and Impose Toi on ground that will have been on the quick side for him.

He will surely run well and I have backed him, but Spirit D'Aunou is the second selection as he's nearly twice the price and represents a trainer who has won this three times since 2007.

Spirit D'Aunou has won five of his seven outings and was particularly impressive last time when scooting home under Niall Houlihan in a decent Class 2 handicap at Sandown in December.

He has been raised 10lb,  but the 17½-length third has gone up by the same amount, and there's no reason why there won't be more to come from a horse still a couple of months short of his fifth birthday.

I was a little surprised at first to see Houlihan replaced by Caoilin Quinn, but the former has lost his claim since then and every pound counts in a race such as this. Quinn has a rock-solid 17 per cent strike-rate for the yard and is perfectly capable, having booted Nassalam home in the Welsh National in December.

My idea of the bet of the day away from the big race is Amarillo Sky in the Betfair Exchange Game Spirit Chase (2.40), largely because you can pick holes in all his rivals.

Edwardstone ran a stinker last time and seems to have forgotten how to win, Boothill fell at Kempton last time, Editeur Du Gite has been in and out this season and doesn't really want very soft ground, and although Funambule Sivola has won the last two runnings, both were on better ground and he seems to have lost his mojo this season.

Amarillo Sky does, admittedly, have something to prove as well because we haven't seen him since he finished lame when fourth to Editeur Du Gite in the Clarence House at Cheltenham just over a year ago, but he did win first time out last season and was clearly on a massive upward curve.

That opening success came at Cheltenham when he gave 9lb and a length-and-a-half beating to Fugitif, who is rated 26lb higher now, and next time he hosed up by 14 lengths over course and distance.

He has won by 14 lengths and ten lengths on the last two occasions he has run at Newbury and would have won just as easily the time before that had he not fallen when going best, so he does look a proper Newbury specialist in the mould of Zanza, who won last season's Denman Chase on this card after a string of good course handicap runs.

Amarillo Sky is the joint youngest in the field and gets weight from all the main protagonists, and if he's fit enough and still retains his ability (Champion Chase entry a good sign) he's going to be a major player.

In the Betfair Serial Winner Fund Handicap Hurdle (1.30), it's worth taking a chance on Equinus bouncing back to form now he's fresh again.

He looked a horse well ahead of his mark when beating a progressive rival by five lengths, with the rest 16 lengths and more adrift, at Aintree on his return, but flopped when a short-priced favourite here 11 days later in the race won by Young Butler.

His subsequent fifth at Sandown was a step back in the right direction, but he still hasn't matched that first run, and the fact he's been given a proper break since might be key.

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