OUT with the old and in with the new as the national hunt season has one big day to come with the Randox Grand National in two weeks’ time, as we witness the start of the turf flat season featuring that annual cavalry charge at Doncaster, the William Hill Lincoln Handicap.

With 22 runners flying down the straight mile this is never an easy race to predict and with six runners rated on 100 or higher this looks a particularly solid renewal of this famous spring contest.

The very lightly raced Le Botte has been made favourite for this famous event courtesy of his eye-catching finishing effort in the Lincoln Trial at Wolverhampton and reports of some impressive home work since then.

Offered at around the 4/1 mark at the moment, he obviously remains open to plenty of improvement, but I am very happy to leave him alone and let him win at that kind of price.

Galeron has run all of his best races at the Town Moor track since switching to the UK from France and his closing fifth 12 months ago is worth some close scrutiny as he now resides off a mark some 12lbs lower and with the good claimer Jack Callan on board to boot. He seems to relish this straight track off a fast pace, but needs delivering at exactly the precise time to land this class two handicap and I just prefer the claims of VALVANO (3.32).

Ralph Beckett’s charge comes here with a rather unusual profile to his name having raced as far as a mile and a half when fifth to Lord Melbourne in the 2024 November Handicap, but then gradually returning in trip to a mile culminating in a cracking third to Desperate Dan over the course and distance in October, a race he had Galeron just ahead of him.

The key to his chance lies with Hector Crouch getting the still relatively unexposed five-year-old to relax in the early part of the race before making his move from three furlongs out. A rating of 96 seems very fair on what he has achieved so far in his brief career and the son of Night of Thunder can see off the two rivals already mentioned along with the likes of the classy top-weight Botanical and the well-fancied James Owen-trained entry Rogue Diplomat.

South African handler Dylan Cunha, now residing at Newmarket, had a fancied runner in last year’s Brocklesby Stakes, and the race now rightly named after Bill Turner this year, he will have learnt a lot about the type of horse needed to win this opening salvo.

This year he will bring to the table STEP TO GLORY (1.20) a Cotai Glory colt out of a Kodiac mare, so full of speed on both sides of the pedigree, and reports are he is ready to go for this first two-year-old contest of the year.

If there is any money for Richard Hannon’s A Bear Affair then he could well be worth a saver on our stake, while the nicely bred Ocean Club is also worth a watch in the market place.

The Listed Cammidge Trophy has been won by some useful types down through the years and normally centres around speedsters that like a bit of give in the ground given the time of the year.

Spycatcher who ended last season in fine style and touched off Iberian 12 months ago has to be a big runner, but I just prefer the claims of MONTASSIB (1.50).

Granted give in the ground and a fast pace to chase, the William Haggas charge is probably a level above Listed class and although he is an eight-year-old, the veteran is very lightly raced on account of being off the track for almost a year after finishing fifth in the 2024 Qipco British Champions Sprint. As he showed last term on his comeback at Newbury he is a useful tool fresh and can make a winning start to his spring campaign.

The Lincoln consolation race, the Spring Mile, is probably more open than the feature event, but I am quite keen on the chance of NAPLES (2.25) now with Steph Hollinshead. This son of Mehmas has only visited the race track on four occasions and his win on his final start in Ireland last year has subsequently been well cemented by the runner-up. Of course he will need a career best to win here in this better grade but the best is yet to come from the selection and he looks a solid each-way call with all the bookmakers likely to put up enhanced place offerings. Of his rivals, the two I fear most are the race fit outsider First Ambition and Mezcala from the Jack Channon yard.

The two divisions of the apprentice handicap that end the card look just about the most difficult conundrums to solve today, but I have already had a little poke at BOWNDER (4.40) in what is probably the best of the two divisions. I also have the utmost respect for the race fit Up The Jazz and Glint of Light.

At Kempton Park, the Virgin Bet Queen’s Prize Handicap has a rather disappointing field of just the nine for the nice prize up for grabs and affords a big chance to big outsider SHERIDAAN (2.08) to make his presence felt. The selection has a fair record at the Sunbury-on-Thames track and may outrun his price.

The Roseberry Handicap at 2.42 has attracted a slightly bigger field and there looks to be plenty of pace on here. That should suit the run style of NIGHT BREEZE. He was well behind course specialist Whitcombe Rockstar three outings back, but had a horrible passage out wide that day and has a nice 9lbs pull in the weights here. He was given a nice warm-up for this over a mile here last time out and if he can get some cover from stall nine he looks well handicapped on some of his best turf form from last summer.