As Kelso’s most valuable raceday approaches, we gain our first glimpse of entries for the 2026 bet365 Morebattle Hurdle. And this year the list of potential runners contains more plots than a John le Carré compendium.

A total of 42 horses have been entered for the handicap hurdle which, with a prize fund of £120,000, is Scotland’s most valuable hurdle race. Additional spice is provided in the shape of a bonus worth £100,000 if the winner can follow up by winning any race at the 2026 Cheltenham Festival.

Cracking Rhapsody, trained locally by Ewan Whillans in Hawick, is seeking a hat-trick in the race, a feat which has only previously been achieved by Jinxy Jack who actually took four runnings for Gordon Richards between 1990 and 1993 (albeit when the race was staged as a weight-for-age event with smaller fields). Winless so far this season, Cracking Rhapsody reportedly underwent wind-surgery prior to his most recent outing at Haydock and hawk-eyed racegoers might have noticed him enjoying a preparatory gallop in the gathering gloom following the final race on Friday.

Jimmy Fyffe is the racehorse owner with the most entries. The director of Dundee United football club has four possible runners: Jet To Vegas, Aspire Tower, Static, and City of Diamonds. Having previously tasted victory in the race with Benson in 2023, Fyffe has become an ardent supporter of Kelso and it is notable, perhaps, that Jet To Vegas was a winner on the very same day last year in the Grade 2 bet365 Premier Novices Hurdle. Having made three appearances over fences, the gelding comes to the Morebattle with an interesting handicap mark for Lucinda Russell (trainer of this week’s selection Myretown at Haydock).

And he’s not the only local horse with a handicap hurdle mark that has been protected as a result of experimentation with fences. Dedicated Hero, trained by Sandy Thomson (who was responsible for Fyffe’s winner Benson), is also a graded-race winner with winning form at Kelso.

While Tutti Quanti could be a formidable top-weight, trainer Paul Nicholls is yet feature on the Morebattle’s roll of honour. Nicky Henderson has scored three times – with Simonsig (2012), Top Notch (2016) and We Have A Dream (2019). Lambourn’s top trainer could potentially be double handed with the JP McManus owned pair Joyeuse and Khrisma; while it’s unlikely that both will run, either would have to sit a high on any shortlist.

The Shunter, trained in Ireland by Emmet Mullins, is the first and (so far) only horse to have claimed the £100,000 Morebattle bonus. There are strong vibes coming from across the Irish Sea for further bonus challengers in the shape of Laafi (William Durkan), Sixandahalf (Gavin Cromwell) and I Started A Joke (Charles Byrnes), the latter being installed as the sponsor’s favourite for the race at 6/1. With two week’s to go, we’ve only just started writing the script…