GRANDERA, arguably the best three-year-old in training yet to win a race this season, can put matters right by snapping up the Listed Dubai Arc Trial at Newbury.

Woe betide any colt having to withstand the sort of bruising Group 1 campaign endured by Grandera, but each time he has stepped back in the ring and given his all against some of the top middle distance horses in Europe.

To think James Fanshawe's representative was third in the French Derby, then runner-up in both the Coral Eclipse and Juddmonte International at York, is an astonishing achievement in itself.

Mind you, I suspect Grandera's connections will be perfectly happy with the near £300,000 in place money he has picked up, although it would only be justice if he finally bags the number one spot at the Berkshire track today.

The six-year-old sprinter, Eastern Purple (1.45), is another massively consistent racehorse.

Kevin Ryan's Yorkshire raider seems to ripple with more muscle every time I see him, an anatomical feature that probably enables the speedster to hold his own against often far younger rivals.

Given the fact Eastern Purple had ten stone to hump in the Portland Handicap at Doncaster's St Leger meeting, he did exceptionally well to finish in fifth position.

The most the gelding has to concede to any of his rivals in the Dubai Airport World Trophy is 6lb, and with only 8st 13lb on his back the old boy will probably think he's running loose.

George Duffield has some decent ammunition at Catterick, including Rheinpark (2.40) in division two of the six-furlong EBF Maiden Stakes.

Mark Johnston's colt will be seeking to make it third time lucky after twice running with promise at Pontefract and Haydock.

Johnston is in with double prospects on the busy card via Our Krissie (3.50), seemingly unsuited by the drop back to ten furlongs when unplaced at Redcar last time.

She'd previously run a cracker over a mile-and-half at Newcastle, a trip much more in line with her undoubted reserves of stamina.

Britain's busiest thoroughbred, Madame Jones (6.00), turns out in the closing seven-furlong handicap, bidding to win her 11th race of the season.

The gutsy six-year-old mare has already run a staggering 40 times this term, cracking the 20th century record for the number of handicaps won in a season.

Trainer David Evans has proved time and again that she thrives on her racing: "She hit a bit of a flat spot in the summer and her owner wanted to take her home. We half fell out about it, but he agreed to keep her going and she's won four since," he said.

Apart from Perfect Peach, Negligee (2.20) is the other horse I'm really interested in at Ayr.

The Barry Hills-trained grey is on the crest of a wave, having won at Salisbury and Chester. She's a really likeable individual who gives the impression of an improving filly, an invaluable asset at this time of year when so many of the fairer sex are beginning to go over the top.

The best news I have at Newmarket surrounds Kayo (5.20), weighted to win the Suffolk Claiming Stakes, while under the lights at Wolverhampton, Reachforyourpocket (9.30) might prove to be a topical tip in the finale, especially if you've not had the good fortune to back a winner all day!

* Sprint specialist David Nicholls did it again as he landed the Tote Ayr Silver Cup with Tayif yesterday.

But the trainer was quick to give credit to jockey Kieren Fallon for his second victory in three years in the race for horses eliminated from the Gold Cup, in which he has three runners bidding to give him a second straight win today.

Tayif was drawn in stall 17 on the stands' side of the 27-runner field for the six-furlong dash but his rider was convinced the far side was the place to be and tracked the pace on that part of the track.

The former champion jockey's judgment proved spot-on as his mount, a 12-1 shot, flew in the final furlong to catch Sharp Hat (16-1) and score by a neck in a finish dominated by those drawn low.

Only For Gold (16-1) was another half length away in third with a further neck back to gambled-on Debbie's Warning, who was backed from a morning 25-1 into 7-1 favourite but could only dead-heat for fourth with the winner's stable-companion Rudik.

Boanerges was first home on the stands side in sixth place.

Nicholls, whose Royal Result took this prize in 1998, said: ''I thought we would be better on the stands side but Kieren thought we should go the other side - he made his own mind up and that's why he's a top-class jockey.''

Fallon explained: ''I thought the speed would be on that side, you can normally work it out. The gaps came in time for us.''

The winner was repaying the faith of his trainer, who not only saddled two of the first five but recalled that he also bought the runner-up for David Chapman.

''Tayif came from Pip Payne,'' Nicholls said. ''I gave six grand for him but he failed the vet - he said he wouldn't stand training!''

The Tote offer just 5-1 against either Continent, Undeterred or The Tatling scoring for Nicholls in today's Gold Cup.