RACING: For the first time in six years it is a Smurfit Champion Hurdle that isn't about Istabraq. Gone are the days when the only hint of unease about the result was the occasional sighting of blood in the old champ's nostril. Now it's up for grabs.

A total of 17 horses line up for the £300,000 pot and it won't be until they make it to the start that their trainers, jockeys, owners and fans will stop looking to the skies.

Ground conditions are central to the opening day feature and the weather continues to conspire in keeping everyone on edge until the last second.

Sunday saw Nicky Henderson, currently the second most successful festival trainer, walk the track, throw the evidence in with his vast experience, and predict the runners will be whizzing around the Prestbury Park circuit.

An hour of overnight rain dampened that argument somewhat but still left the forecast going as "good". A dire Met Office forecast for rain last night was then contradicted by the track's own Met man. It will not be that bad, he said.

It's enough to add another couple of worry lines to Christy Roche's face as the Curragh trainer anxiously prays for the soft ground that will give Like-A-Butterfly an excellent shout of carrying the JP McManus colours to another championship success.

Like-A-Butterfly has only ever been beaten once, saved the Irish in last year's opener and even managed to face down Limestone Lad in her only start of this term. In a year like this she presents a convincing argument, but only with cut in the ground.

"I need a drop of rain. Real good ground will not be ideal but they haven't had real rain since Friday and that missed the track.

"Only fifteen miles away Jonjo O'Neill's place got it but the track didn't.

"She does need soft ground but there's nothing I can do about it," Roche said yesterday.

In contrast another Irish runner, Scottish Memories, can't have it fast enough but even with ideal conditions, with the ground like a road, the evidence would suggest an each-way shout at best. Willie Mullins's pair, Holy Orders and Scolardy, look out of their depth.

The current title holder Hors La Loi looks sure to do better than he has previously this season which brings us the "could be anything" horse of the race, Rhinestone Cowboy.

The John Magnier-owned seven-year-old once resided at Istabraq's old stomping ground at Ballydoyle and gave a fair impression of a potential superstar when winning with nonchalant ease at Wincanton.

Yet his trainer Jonjo O'Neill has admitted he thinks his other horse Intersky Falcon could be the better bet.

That would be enough for most punters except for Intersky Falcon's reputation as something of a flake. Talented flakes often flatter to deceive up that Cheltenham hill.

Rooster Booster, last year's County winner, has been at or near the top of the ante-post market all season but can he really have improved that much in one season? His argument isn't helped either by Philip Hobbs's suspicion that his other runner, In Contrast, might be the best of his on fast conditions.

If those are the conditions that do face the field at the start then last year's runner-up Marble Arch could be an each-way option, especially on the back of a smooth warm-up victory on the all-weather last month.

But those searching for a better each-way option in the circumstances may do a lot worse than examine the credentials of Flame Creek.

Trainer Noel Chance is sweet on his chance and is a proven Cheltenham winner.

Flame Creek's Co Tipperary-born jockey Seamus Durack has been successful in recent years, including a festival success of his own, but has failed to breach the gap to the absolute top of his profession. He is confident Flame Creek can get him there this time.

"He is the fastest horse I've sat on and I've ridden work on Looks Like Trouble and Flagship Uberalles. It's unbelievable the speed he has," he said.

That speed can be decisive - if only the weather lets him use it.