‘Enormous leap forward’ - William Hill Each Way Extra Challenge Series Handicap Hurdle Tips We’ve got an intriguing seven-race card to look forward to at Cork on Thursday and the first of two William Hill-sponsored races is the William Hill Each Way Extra Challenge Series Handicap Hurdle. This series runs from October and runs until April, covering 50 qualifying races and there’s also a big bonus on offer for the connections with the most points. Philip Rothwell is running away with it at the moment and his total of 107 points is more than double that of second-place Paul Nolan. A monster field of 22 has been declared, as well as three reserves, and our expert has previewed the race and selected two of their strongest fancies. Good luck finding the winner! There doesn’t appear to be any stand out candidates amongst the field and that means we should be set for a very competitive race. Wild Wild Wind has finished second or third in each of his last three starts and Hugh Horgan returns to take 5lb off once again. Eamon Courtney’s Old Kenmare is lightly raced over hurdles and was last seen finishing second at Clonmel in April but she has a 336-day absence to overcome. Falcon Park was last victorious off a mark of 87 in January 2025 and he returned to form with a solid second at Clonmel last month. The familiar JP McManus silks will be carried by Charles O’Brien’s No Big Deal and the six-year-old has every chance on the balance of his best form. It’s definitely interesting that Jack Kennedy has been booked to ride the unexposed Orlando Spirit, who appears to be going the right way. Don’t rule out Gino Bella either, as she won a point-to-point in November and wasn’t beaten far when third over hurdles at Thurles shortly after. Jay Pee M won over fences for Terence O’Brien last term and should be capable of making his present felt off a 17lb lower hurdles mark. No Big Deal can return to winning ways Charles O’Brien runs the JP McManus-owned NO BIG DEAL here and there’s plenty to like about his chances. He’s been relatively consistent on the whole since the summer and was runner-up at Roscommon in September, off a 7lb lower mark. Going one better at Clonmel the following month, O’Brien’s gelding was hanging up the run-in but that didn’t stop him from coming out on top. He followed that up with a solid effort at Thurles, where he finished fourth, with the assistance of 7lb claimer Eoin Staples. Charlie O’Dwyer comes in for the ride on this occasion and he takes 5lb off. No Big Deal has been dropped 1lb since his latest run and this looks like a good opportunity to earn a second victory. Orlando Spirit could progress again Paul Power has booked the services of leading jockey Jack Kennedy for this race and he showed next to nothing in four starts in maiden company. It was a very different story on handicap debut at Thurles last month however and he took an enormous leap forward to finish second. Only beaten by a neck on that occasion, he may well have come out on top with another stride or two. The handicapper has responded with a 4lb rise so he will need to improve again but the six-year-old is entitled to do so. Further progress could well be on the cards.
