Hot To Trot: Butcher the bet at Leicester meat-ing

Jumps trainer: Warren Greatrex 

It was announced in July that champion jockey Richard Johnson would have first call on horses trained by Warren Greatrex this season, and both parties have certainly been reaping the benefits of that link-up in recent weeks. Indeed, four of Johnson's last six rides for the stable have been winners, including a determined victory for La Bague Au Roi in the listed mares' hurdle at Kempton last Monday, while Andrew Tinkler, amateur Adam Elias and trainer's son Thomas Greatrex have also helped the yard's cause with winners in the last fortnight.  

As the above graph demonstrates, horses from the Greatrex yard have generally been running well of late - more so than at this stage of the season in years gone by - and the trainer will be hoping the likes of Aloomomo can continue that at Southwell on Tuesday. A useful chaser, he shaped as if needing the run after 11 months off when third in a novice hurdle at Carlisle last time and should give another good account stepping back up to 3m next week, with early jockey bookings suggesting Johnson will again be in the saddle.

Mahlervous is entered in the maiden hurdle on the same card and should find that assignment more realistic than well held in a listed bumper at Cheltenham's November meeting, while The Butcher Said is another to look out for when making his hurdling debut at Leicester on Sunday. Bought for €135,000 after finishing second in a bumper at the Punchestown Festival, he very much looks the part and should prove capable of better than when third on stable debut in another bumper at Sandown three weeks ago. 

Flat trainer: Jim Goldie

Jim Goldie lost a couple of his stable stars during the summer - Hawkeyethenoo was retired in July and Jack Dexter put down after suffering a fractured cannonbone at Ripon the following month - but there has been plenty to lift his spirits in recent weeks, and it is at Newcastle that most of his best days have come. Six winners from 60 runners at the track in 2017 may not be the most inspiring statistic, but four of those came in the month of November alone, kick-starting what has been a real purple patch for the Scottish handler.

As a result, Goldie's runners at Gosforth Park on Wednesday have to be worth a second look, including Insurplus, who is of obvious interest in the seven-furlong handicap following a comfortable victory over C&D last month. That represented the best effort of his career to date and, though 7 lb higher in the weights here, the four-year-old looks sure to go well in a race that could also feature stablemates Thello and Tommy G. 

Goldie could have as many as four runners in the six-furlong handicap, with Fintry Flyer and Lotara perhaps the most interesting. The former showed her first form of any note when third on her all-weather debut over C&D last time and might have given the winner more to think about with more luck, having endured trouble in-running when going well over a furlong out. She may do better still and is one to keep an eye on at this lowly level. Lotara, on the other hand, won an apprentice handicap over seven furlongs at the track last time and escapes a penalty here. She cannot be discounted, for all that she is no obvious type to follow up.

Under the radar: James Ewart

James Ewart may be a newcomer to this feature, but his place is well deserved having saddled four winners and eight placed runners from just 23 runners in the month of November. Aristo du Plessis has been the stable star in recent seasons - the seven year-old won six of his seven starts between February 2015 and January 2016 - and he took advantage of a significant drop in the weights to resume winning ways at Wetherby last month, making all and looking hungry again. He won off 145 in his pomp and should remain competitive off 133.

Un Guet Apens could be a real money spinner for the yard this season, too, if he can put his training issues behind him. The nine-year-old was making just his fourth start since March 2015 when running out a gutsy winner over fences at Carlisle last time, and remains with scope from a handicapping point of view given how highly rated he was in his prime. Indeed, the one-time useful hurdler can race off a BHA mark of 116 back in that sphere at Haydock on Wednesday and has to enter caluclations for his in-form yard.