Essex favourite for Newbury showpiece
The five-year-old, trained by Michael O'Brien, is outright market leader at 6-1 with Coral and 7-1 with Ladbrokes for the ÂŁ125,000 Grade Three handicap hurdle over an extended two miles.
However, William Hill make Essex, who has been handed 10st 5lb in the weights announced yesterday, one of four co-favourites at 8-1 with another Irish raider, Paul Nolan's Accordion Etoile, plus the Martin Pipe-trained pair Marcel and Tamarinbleu. The latter pair are among a 15-strong team from Nicholashayne.
