Betfair Ambassador Paul Nicholls on his runners at Kempton

A week ago, Pic D'Orhy provided Nicholls with his first Grade One success in a year when landing the Betfair Ascot Chase and he is hopeful that the upturn in fortunes will continue this weekend.

The stable saddle two runners in the Ladbrokes Trophy Handicap Chase over three miles with Harry Cobden riding Golden Son and Jonny Burke aboard Tahmuras.

Golden Son was last seen finishing third over course and distance behind easy winner Beachcomber at the Christmas meeting and Nicholls told Betfair's Ditcheat Decs that they have been biding their time ever since.

"Golden Son ran very well the last day over three miles and we've waited for this race," he said.

"He could just do with a little drop of rain overnight to ease the ground, I wouldn't want to see it get faster for either him or Tahmuras, but a bit of ease in the ground on the slow side of good would be perfect.

"This is a slightly tougher race. He won at the meeting last year, it seems to be his time of year and I'm very happy with him this week and hopefully Golden Son will run into a place and run very well, it would be nice if he could win."

Tahmuras has also raced twice this season, disappointing in a graduation chase on his return before an improved showing in the Rowland Meyrick Chase at Wetherby.

"Tahmuras ran very well last year in the Pendil on this card, wasn't beaten far and at the time we said to Noel [Fehily] and Dave [Crosse] 'the three mile race might be just his bag next year' and here we are," he continued.

"It's an easy three miles which will suit him, we've had to just take our time with him but he's in a good place as well at the moment and it wouldn't surprise me if he ran very well."

Rubaud has won at Kempton on three occasions and he sets the standard in the Ladbrokes Pendil Novices' Chase having finished second to L'eau du Sud in the Grade Two Kingmaker Novices' Chase at Warwick last time.

"He ran very well," Nicholls said of his Midlands outing.

"The ground is soft enough for him. Two and a half miles, he's never been that far, I'm sure he looked like the last day as though that will help him. He'll love Kempton, he's won there several times and the key is the ground; at the moment it's basically good, good to soft in places and if it stays like that, that's perfect for him."

Nicholls is less certain about what to expect from French import Sauvignon when he lines up in the Ladbrokes Adonis Juvenile Hurdle.

The winner of a Listed race at Auteuil was pulled up on his stable debut in January but Nicholls revealed that nothing came to light to explain the performance.

"He just didn't turn up at all at Cheltenham and we found nothing," he said.

"That sometimes happens with these French horses and it's awfully frustrating for all the connections but he just didn't go at all. I've got a theory, sometimes the races in France for the juveniles are run at a bit of a crawl and then they sprint over the last two; suddenly in a race over here when they go a good gallop from the start catches them out a little bit and sometimes they just need a run or two to get the way our races go and I think a flatter track tomorrow might just suit him a lot more.

"He's gone nicely at home, schooled well the other day so everything is in place to have a good run. He's in good shape at the moment and tomorrow will tell us an awful lot more."

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