Follow the master again

If you have one bet before the year's end, Master Minded looks a good thing in tomorrow's rescheduled Tingle Creek Chase at Cheltenham.

If the former dual champion chaser enters the Grade One event in anything like the form he did on his seasonal reappearance at Ascot, where he routed his five rivals in a Grade Two event, he will be very hard to beat.

The ground was thought to be too fast for Master Minded (1.55pm, nb) when he failed in his bid to land the Queen Mother Champion Chase for a third successive year in March and all his best form has come with a bit of cut underfoot.

He has since undergone a breathing operation and trainer Paul Nicholls has issued an upbeat bulletin ahead of the extended two-mile event.

"What I'd like to see is him put two good races together after he was a little disappointing last year and he certainly looked back to his best at Ascot the last day," said Nicholls.

"In his work at the moment he's as good as he's ever been, he's really sparkled since his win at Ascot and I'm very happy with him."