ONE of the main themes to today’s feature at Newbury, the Betfair Hurdle (3:35), is Not So Sleepy’s quest for a £100,000 bonus put up by the sponsors, following his win in the Betfair Exchange Trophy at Ascot just before Christmas.

That Ascot performance was seriously impressive, in the way that he scooted clear of a competitive field and many believe a win today could elevate Hughie Morrison’s horse into a credible Champion Hurdle contender. However, a look at the recent winners of the race suggests he’ll have to win as well as he did at Ascot to even entertain such a pretension.