Sergeant York in command

Nigel Shields can hit the jackpot with Sergeant York at Wolverhampton today. The former racing journalist has had plenty of success in recent years with horses bought cheaply and then campaigned boldly on the all-weather.

Now Sergeant York is set to give the owner his biggest payday in the £50,000 Ed Weetman Haulage And Storage Lincoln Trial. Success would represent a tremendous return on the £12,000 it cost to claim the gelding last season.

And it looks very much on the cards judged on the five-year old's recent debut for trainer David Barron at Southwell, where he was always cruising and did not need to be at all hard ridden to come home a two-length winner.

A change of scenery has clearly revitalised Sergeant York, who was a very useful performer in his younger days.

He remains attractively treated today despite a rise in the weights and he will take plenty of beating.

Pips Song can also roll back the years to take advantage of a favourable mark in the earlier Tote Scoop6 Handicap.

The six-year-old won this £20,000-added event in 1999 and looks to have been trained with a repeat in mind by Jon Scargill, shaping encouragingly in two outings to date this term.

Makarim may be worth another chance in the Bix Beiderbecke Handicap after an odds-on defeat last time out.

He was having his fifth race in relatively quick succession when only third in a similar event here in January and looked a little laboured in the closing stages.

He'll be all the better for a seven-week break since that outing and can be expected to be back in the form he showed in winning each of his four previous races in the style of a progressive stayer.

Batswing could be the main beneficiary if Sandown's jumps card passes a 7.00 a.m. inspection.

Last year's November Handicap winner has every chance of landing another big prize in the £40,000 Sunderlands Imperial Cup Hurdle.

He shaped well on his winning return to hurdles at Doncaster last month and will be suited by the testing underfoot conditions.

Ready To Rumble may come out on top in a fascinating race for the EBF `National Hunt' Novices' Handicap Hurdle Final.

Campaign may be the best bet at Warwick. He showed signs of a return to form in the Tote Northern National at Newcastle, where he was in close touch and full of running when he fell at the 16th of 25 fences.

The National Crudwell Cup appears a less competitive event and offers Campaign a good chance to land his first win of the season.