OPEN-RACE fans are building up to another huge weekend - and Hove and Swindon kick-starts that action tonight.

Ahead of Saturday's six heats apiece of the both the Ladbrokes Gold Cup and Ladbrokes Summer Stayers Classic at Monmore plus the Ladbrokes Guys & Dolls semi-finals at Crayford on Sunday, not to mention Romford's usual Friday night fare, the action from the Sussex and Wiltshire tracks is pretty decent.

The eye-catcher at Hove is definitely Missile One (8.24) who goes for Seamus Cahill in the Coral 500 Maiden Trophy Final. After a rough ride on debut, things opened up nicely for this very exciting son of Broadstrand Bono who came through strongly in the heats of this event seven days ago and looks ready to follow up.

Droopys Pivotel (8.59) has a far higher profile when going for Maxine Locke in a crackerjack Division A of the Coral Summertime 500 Standard.

The draw for the English Derby semi-finalist looks a real positive and the more-than-useful pair of Clona Uriel and Uncle Freddie, both Coral Sussex Cup finalists, help make the market for backers of the red-box - as does the improving Distant Cara.

Soul Reason (6.08) makes the return to open-race company in the opener and June Harvey's runner might be tough to hold off the back of a solid second in an A1 last week. He starts and stays well, while Maxine Locke's newcomer Droopys Manowar (6.26) brings smart trials and Irish form to the table and gets the vote in the sprint.

Other fancies at Hove are last year's Sussex Cup winner Candolim Monsoon (6.42) for the in-form Derek Knight kennel in Division B of the Coral Summertime 500 Standard, while a tentative vote goes the way of the returning Ower Smasher (7.16) for June Harvey given she stays powerfully and might run fresh and fast on comeback.

Swindon also gets back on the open-race trail tonight with a batch of opens where Carol Weatherall's Getup Me Boy (9.20) should go well as pitched against Union Rebel.

The latter represents in-form Kevin Hutton - well done incidentally to the Derby-winning trainer for getting six finalists through to Saturday's BGBF British Bred Oaks decider at Oxford, a super effort - but the well-drawn Getup Me Boy has first-run potential from the red-box in the Blunsdon Standard over 476m as drawn.

Angie Kibble's Ballymac Rocky (9.36) could make his rivals see red in the Blunsdon Stayers over 682m after a brilliant run of success of late.

Hove hotties

Soul Reason (6.08)

Droopys Manowar (6.26)

Candolim Monsoon (6.42)

Ower Smasher (7.16)

Missile One (8.24)

Droopys Pivotel (8.59)

Swindon stars

Getup Me Boy (9.20)

Ballymac Rocky (9.36)