A 6-1 ante-post tip for the bet365 Scottish Champion Chase

It is only two weeks until the bet365 Scottish Cheltenham Trials weekend, live on Racing TV, takes centre stage at Musselburgh, with over £400,000 in prize money on offer, and a few Cheltenham Festival clues across both days.

Bet365 sponsor all but one of the 14 races at the two-day fixture, including the bet365 Scottish Champion Chase on day one, and an early ante-post market is available with the sponsors for the extended 2m4f contest.

Thistle Ask (3-1) heads the betting, although is highly unlikely to run following his game effort behind Jonbon in Saturday's BetMGM Clarence House Chase, and Jane Williams revealed this week that Saint Segal (9-2), who finished second in this race last year, is set to head to Newbury for the William Hill Game Spirit Chase on February 7.

The 6-1 on offer for THE KALOOKI KID is therefore worth taking now, and he will hold strong claims of recording back-to-back victories, despite failing to show his best over this course and distance last time out when appearing to have plenty in his favour. 

However, given it was his first start for 60 days, the eight-year-old may have lacked full fitness there and, in hindsight, that outing could have been a prep run for this contest. 

He also appeared distracted by a rival (Jet To Vegas) who wandered approaching each obstacle, and jumped out to his right (you can watch the replay above). That possibly hindered The Kalooki Kid's jumping, which is usually his asset, as he failed to gain any lengths at his obstacles, according to the RaceiQ data.

For context, the RaceiQ data shows he recorded a Jump Index score of 8.5/10, which gained him over 12 lengths, when landing the 2025 bet365 Scottish Champion Chase on just his third outing over fences plus gained 17 lengths via his jumping en route to an impressive victory at Doncaster last season.

He's usually a strong-traveller, too, and was on the backfoot a long way from home when last seen, so it is wise to think he will take a step forward from that outing. I also expect a repeat bid here has been the plan for a while, and it is worth noting that last year's contest looked a strong renewal, with Saint Segal boosting the form significantly afterwards.

Nicky Richards' grey also caught the eye in the Colin Parker Memorial Intermediate Chase in November where he chased home some smart performers, which was his first start since finding Grade One company too hot at Aintree last season, and that signalled he was set for another productive season over fences.

Although the selection is 7lb above last year's winning mark now, he remains with low mileage over fences, and should have more to offer. Regular rider Danny McMenamin also returned to the saddle on Sunday (January 18) after a short spell on the sidelines, and is likely to be reunited with The Kalooki Kid, which is another positive.

Advised ante-post bet: THE KALOOKI KID at a 6-1 with the sponsors to win the bet365 Scottish Champion Chase at Musselburgh on Saturday, January 31.