FILL your boots by backing Rainbow High (3.10), bidding to win this afternoon's £100,00 Chester Cup for the second time in three years.

The Barry Hills trained stayer prevailed in 1999, prior to finishing a most unlucky fifth in the race last year. There's a tried-and-tested theory in racing that you can give your opponents weight or a head start, but never both.

Twelve months ago Rainbow High had to give away 14lbs to his nearest rival, plus endured the agony of being drawn in the worst stall of all on the wide outside.

Forced to go round the houses and then having to drop in at the rear of the maximum field of 18, he could never get near to the leaders, eventually running on stoutly at the death to beaten less than three lengths by Bangalore.

Nothing could be more different now because Rainbow High had the luck to pull the number 5 berth out of the hat, which means Richard Hughes should be able to sit handily on the inside rail throughout, before producing his mount to lead in the short home straight.

The following Shadwell Stud Cheshire Oaks features several promising fillies including Inchiri (3.40).

She won her ten furlong Ripon maiden with plenty of authority, powering up the centre of the course in a manner which suggested she would be even better over today's slightly longer trip.

In the closing Cheshire Regiment another recent Ripon scorer, Tomasino (4.45), also has a fine chance of completing a double.

Owned by BHB Chairman, Peter Savill, Tomasino won despite appearing to be a shade burly in the preliminaries at the North Yorkshire venue. On the assumption he'll be even fitter for his second start, further progress could be on the agenda.

Fast ground at Ayr has come bang on cue for Grimaldi Lad (3.55), fancied to give Andy Crook his first success since taking over from Micky Hammond at Middleham's Oakwood Stables.

Grimaldi Lad's positively fruitful autumn campaign came to end once the going turned soft and he was duly put away for the winter. However the long wait is over, so even after a 228-day absence he might still be good enough to take the Golden Eagle Handicap.

One word of advice if you're contemplating travelling to Wetherby's evening meeting, get there in plenty of time because a sizeable crowd is almost guaranteed now that the weather has picked up.

There are no really easy opportunities on an action-packed night, although I do like the look of Minioso (7.35) in the Rocom Novices' Handicap Chase.

Sue Smith's strapping seven-year-old mare bolted up at Market Rasen 11 days ago. She really is a lovely prospect who jumps particularly well, a much-needed quality when trying to negotiate the demanding fences at the track.

The light will surely be fading for the Wedding Receptions Handicap Hurdle, but not too dark to see Vanishing Dancer (8.35) hopefully romp home.

Alan Dickman's previous course and distance winner caught the eye when a strong finishing fourth in a 24-runner field at the track in April over two miles.

* Racecourse and media group Arena Leisure yesterday announced plans to raise £85million and confirm its position as a partner in the new Go Racing media rights agreement with British racecourses.

Go Racing, the joint venture involving Arena, BSkyB and Channel Four, is on the brink of securing a deal to broadcast from the vast majority of British racecourses, including all those who currently enjoy terrestrial television coverage.

Friday's deadline for racecourses to sign the Go Racing deal will not be extended and already 32 of Britain's 59 racecourses, including Aintree, Ascot and Cheltenham, have given their assent.

The take-up of the offer, which was only sent out to all tracks last week, was revealed at a press conference in London today.

The Go Racing deal will bring hundreds of millions of pounds over the next ten years to the racecourses who sign up.

Nine smaller courses have already pledged to go with the rival GG-Media offer which is backed by SIS.

The final date for courses to accept that deal is midnight tonight.

Arena also revealed yesterday that Graham Parr, the driving force in the company's early days, is to step down as chief executive while remaining a non-executive director.

Speaking at the press conference, Ian Penrose, the new Group Managing Director, forecast a new era for British racing, with the aim being to revitalise interest in the sport along the lines that football has developed.

He said: ''Arena has only been existence since 1997 and we want to play a key role in the revitalisation of UK horseracing. We looked at what happened in football which has never been more popular a clear testament to the power of broadcasting.

''Racing has entertainment and betting value and we want to maximise revenues for racing as a sport and secondly for Arena. The potential revenues are huge as UK horseracing is generally accepted as being the world's best racing product.

''The ultimate aim is to create a 24-hour horseracing betting channel. We want UK horseracing to be the central core of that.''