WITH the National Hunt season moving up a gear, Henrietta Knight is set to take the wraps off Racing Demon and Impek, the stars of her West Lockinge stables, near Wantage.

Racing Demon is due to return to the fray in the Colin Parker Memorial Intermediate Chase over two and a half miles at Carlisle on Sunday.

And Impek is set to make his seasonal reappearance in the William Hill Haldon Gold Cup at Exeter on Tuesday.

Racing Demon's northern raid could see him renew rivalry with Monet's Garden, who finished in front of Knight's charge in the Arkle Trophy last term when they were second and seventh.

The West Lockinge trainer said: "It may be pretty tough for his first race, but it was either that or the Haldon Gold Cup and I don't want to be taking on Impek either. It had to be one or the other.

"The Gold Cup is a long way off yet and we have to take in these intermediate chases first and see how we go."

Impek, meanwhile, will use the Haldon Gold Cup as a stepping stone for an attempt at a repeat victory in the totesport Peterborough Chase at Huntingdon on Saturday, November 18.

Knight notched up another winner when Cruising River and Timmy Murphy followed up their recent Uttoxeter victory with a short-head success over Closed Shop in a novices' hurdle over two miles and six furlongs at Wincanton.

Meanwhile, the silks worn by Jim Culloty when he rode Knight's ill-fated champion, Best Mate, to a third Cheltenham Gold Cup win are to go under the hammer.

Together with a racing plate worn by Matey on that memorable day, the silks - which have been autographed by owner Jim Lewis, Knight and her husband Terry Biddlecombe - will be auctioned at Sotherby's Olympia saleroom next Wednesday, with proceeds going to St Richard's Hospice, Worcestershire.

Herecomestanley landed an incident-packed handicap chase at Fakenham for Milton Harris's Edgcote yard, near Banbury.

Nesnaas, trained by Mark Rimell at Leafield, near Witney, gained reward for his consistency with a hard-fought success under Jamie Moore in a two-mile handicap hurdle at Ludlow.

On the Flat, Bed Fellow followed up his recent Windsor win for Alan Jarvis's Twyford yard, near Bicester, with victory in a mile nursery at Newbury.