WILLIE Mullins’ Sicilian Secret came in for plenty of support following a stylish piece of work after racing at Leopardstown yesterday and is now 4-1 favourite with William Hill and Cashmans for the Weatherbys Champion Bumper.

Brave Inca will try and use his trademark battling qualities to justify favouritism and end a two-year losing stretch in the Toshiba Irish Champion Hurdle at Leopardstown on Sunday.

Brave Inca and Sublimity headline 10 runners for the Toshiba Champion Hurdle at Leopardstown on Sunday.

Sublimity will attempt to regain his Champion Hurdle crown at Cheltenham on top of his game after providing rookie trainer Robbie Hennessy with a first win in the Leopardstown Golf Centre December Festival Hurdle.

SUBLIMITY, the Champion Hurdle winner of 2007, showed he is far from a back number when landing the Grade 1 Golf Centre December Festival Hurdle at Leopardstown yesterday.

Robbie Hennessy saddled his first ever winner as 2007 Champion Hurdle victor Sublimity saw off a battle-hardened field in the Grade One Leopardstown Golf Centre December Festival Hurdle today.

Sublimity is “all systems go” for the wbx.com ’Fighting Fifth’ Hurdle at Newcastle on Saturday week.

GLENFINN CAPTAIN, who failed to win last season, struck gold at the first time of asking for this campaign when storming away with the Wilderness Chase at Clonmel yesterday.

TWO-year-olds Aaroness and Bushranger stole the show when opening their respective accounts at Tipperary last night.

RAIDERS from Ireland and Britain had mixed fortunes at Auteuil yesterday.

THE teak-tough Blazing Bailey dug deep to win the ladbrokes.com World Series Hurdle at Punchestown yesterday giving trainer, Alan King, his first ever winner at the Festival.

DESCRIBING Philip Carberry as having been around the block once or twice is hardly wide of the mark, considering he’s now in his ninth season as a professional jockey.

ALL is well in the Sublimity camp after last year’s Champion Hurdle hero warmed up for his repeat bid with a pleasing racecourse gallop at Leopardstown.

County Hurdle winner Pedrobob is due to make his eagerly-awaited debut over fences in the Conway Group European Breeders Fund Novice Chase at Navan this weekend.

Philip Carberry was reunited with Champion Hurdle winner Sublimity on Friday morning and reported the seven-year-old to be stronger than ever.

Gordon Elliott is hoping Silver Birch's Grand National win can kickstart his fledgling training career.

COLM MURPHY revealed Brave Inca will take his chance in the ACC Bank Champion Hurdle at Punchestown on April 27.

PAT HUGHES has reported Point Barrow to be in top shape after his recent exertions as money continues to pour in for the John Smith’s Grand National hope.

PUNTERS have struggled all week, but fortunes were taken out of the ring by Wichita Lineman in the Brit Insurance Novices’ Hurdle at Cheltenham yesterday, giving Tony McCoy a much needed change of fortune.

TWO magnificent timber-toppers in Brave Inca and Hardy Eustace may now be in decline, but there’s a new kid on the block from Ireland called Sublimity, who showed a devastating turn of foot to land the Smurfit Kappa Champion Hurdle at sun-drenched Cheltenham yesterday.

Sublimity and Philip Carberry landed odds of 16-1 in a thrilling renewal of the Smurfit Kappa Champion Hurdle, the feature race on the opening day of the 2007 Cheltenham Festival.

KAZAL, one of the toughest horses in training, took his score for the season to six victories from seven races with a typically gutsy performance in the valuable Michael Purcell Memorial Novice Hurdle at Thurles yesterday.

ROBERT TYNER is optimistic that Spring The Que can jump into the reckoning for Sunday’s Pierse Hurdle at Leopardstown.

Arthur Moore is preparing to launch a two-pronged strike on Sunday’s Pierse Hurdle at Leopardstown with Lenrey and Well Mounted.

DECLAN MCDONOGH continued his relentless pursuit of a first Jockeys' Championship when recording a double on Osprey View and Nakiska at rain-soaked Ballinrobe yesterday.

CONSIDERING the dreadful weather for much of the week, the hugely successful seven-day Listowel Festival was completed in style yesterday, with the overall attendance a highly satisfactory 87,000.

FRANKIE DETTORI has been snapped up for the ride on French challenger Linda’s Lad in the Vodafone Derby at Epsom on Saturday.

RUBY WALSH has long suspected that the brilliant Asian Maze doesn’t truly get three miles and her victory in yesterday’s Whitewater Champion Stayers’ Hurdle at Punchestown did nothing to change his mind.

The long wait for a winner proved worthwhile for Pat Hughes when Point Barrow gave the trainer his second Powers Whiskey Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse yesterday.

PAT HUGHES, who hadn't visited the winner's enclosure since early November, broke his duck in dramatic style when 20-1 shot Point Barrow landed the biggest prize in National Hunt racing in Ireland, the Powers' Whiskey Grand National at Fairyhouse yesterday.

Point Barrow sprung a 20-1 surprise in the Powers Whiskey Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse.

Sublimity will try to improve on his Cheltenham Festival fourth in the VC Bet Champion Novice Hurdle at Punchestown later this month.

CURRAGH trainer Dessie Hughes continued his impressive strike rate with his team of summer jumpers when Khairambar, carrying his own colours, scored a smooth success in the Parkhouse Stud Chase at Wexford last night.

Kentucky Charm (4-1) became the first horse to win twice at this year’s Galway festival when capturing the Dawn Milk Handicap Hurdle this afternoon.

EDWARD O'GRADY, absent at his uncle the legendary P P Hogan's funeral, missed seeing Kentucky Charm land the GPT Handicap at the first stage of the Galway Festival last night.

Trainer Michael O’Brien is eyeing a big-race double with Essex after the five-year-old justified favouritism in the Pierse Hurdle at Leopardstown yesterday.

Barry Geraghty was once again the star of the show at Leopardstown today as he took the two most valuable races of the afternoon courtesy of Essex and Newmill.

MICHAEL O’BRIEN’S Swordplay made it two from two over fences when getting the best of a terrific tussle with Warrens Castle in the Mean Fiddler Organisation ’Chase at Tramore yesterday.

LIGHT On The Broom, a faller in two of his previous four outings over fences, produced an impeccable round of jumping to land the Killinan Beginners Chase at Thurles yesterday.

ANDREW LEIGH, son of Jessica Harrington's travelling head-man Eamonn, registered the second success of his career when scoring on even-money favourite

RACING at Gowran Park was abandoned after two races yesterday when the acting Stewards agreed with the jockeys' assertion that the track was unsafe.

Limestone Lad remains on course for the Bonusprint Stayers’ Hurdle after he delighted connections when working after racing at Leopardstown.