Ross Millar's top horse racing tips for Monday

The Christmas and New Year period certainly delivered an abundance of top-class racing for us all to enjoy. I’m on viewing number 12 of Galopin Des Champs’ impressive chase debut – it can’t fail to put you in a good mood.

Those holding ante-post slips on Galvin for this season’s Grand National must be rueing his improved performance to win the Savills Chase. Aintree looks unlikely now but could he follow the Native River route and win the Gold Cup?

Don’t write off A Plus Tard. I think he was below his best on the day but Henry De Bromhead is a master at having them ready for the second week in March.

Speaking of Native River, it was great to see connections take decisive action after their warrior showed them that he was no longer relishing the battle quite as much as he used to. He’s a horse that I had huge affection and admiration for and I wish him a long and happy retirement.

A more sedate week of racing awaits us before we hopefully get to see Constitution Hill in the Unibet Tolworth Hurdle at Sandown on Saturday. Monday’s racing comes from Musselburgh and Southwell and I have selections at both meetings.

The form of her recent Cheltenham third received a significant boost on Saturday when her conquerer, Vienna Court, ran out a convincing winner of a Grade Three handicap chase at the same venue.

The Cheltenham race was over four furlongs shorter than this and I’m certain the extra distance here will suit, given that she looked to get outpaced before staying on stoutly up the hill. It’s also worth noting that her sole hurdle win came when faced with her stiffest stamina test – 2m6f on heavy ground at Ayr.

The win which came on her penultimate start would suggest a mark of 113 is workable given that she was value for far more than the official two lengths she beat the 107-rated Lilth, who was receiving 2lb.

Fergal O’Brien continues to have his team in excellent form and looks to have an excellent chance of another winner with this lightly-raced mare.

It’s a long way to Scotland from David Jeffrey’s base in Gloucestershire but it’s a journey he’s already twice made successfully with Petrastar, who recorded two wins at Perth in 2020.

The second of those wins was a bloodless victory that landed him a 9lb hike in the handicap up to a mark of 131. He was then upped significantly in grade to contest a pair of Grade Two races and looked somewhat out of his depth.

A year off the track followed before he returned last November at Exeter, where he travelled with too much exuberance and then wasn’t given a hard time when understandably weakening.

He’s dropped back to a mark of 121, which is below his last winning mark, and the tight nature of this track should suit his strong travelling style. I’d like to think this could be another successful raid to Scotland for Petrastar.

This Grand National candidate gets to run here over hurdles off a mark 24lb below his chase mark.

It’s often the case that horses that have such a disparity between their chase and hurdle mark are simply better in one discipline than the other, and of course that remains a possibility here, but with just three UK hurdle starts to his name and at a double-figure price I’m prepared to explore the possibility that he’s absolutely chucked in.

None of his hurdle starts have been devoid of promise. Indeed, in the first two, he was hampered at a crucial time, most notably at Cheltenham where he rallied late on over 2m4f.

Over fences, a test of stamina has certainly looked to suit, so there is reason to think this three-mile trip could deliver an improved hurdle performance. His jockey, David Bass, has already shown he has what it takes to win with this slightly quirky character, as he steered him to success at Ascot a couple of years ago.

I'm sure he is being ticked over until the National in April - he was a staying-on fourth in the Becher last time and has a rating of 147 - but I’m prepared to take a chance on him at the 18-1 on offer.