Leading greyhound Tims Crow, who stamped his mark on the William Hill Pall Mall with a blistering run in the opening round, is strongly fancied to stage a repeat show in the quarter-finals at Oxford Stadium tonight.

Breaking fast, the Peter Rich-trained black dog was soon clear in Tuesday's heats, and finished half a dozen lengths clear of All Gold in a time of 27.17secs.

The 2003 Greyhound of the Year admittedly didn't face the strongest of rivals, but even so, he did what he had to.

The sponsors make him the 9-4 favourite for the £8,000 first prize, and drawn in his favourite striped jacket, he looks to have an even easier task to make it through to the semi-finals.

Equally impressive was the John Faint-trained Coolmona Dave, who went nearly a length faster than Tims Crow in beating Connoisseur by over five lengths, in 27.10.

However, Coolmona may find Brian Clemenson's Centour Para a handful tonight. Para encountered trouble in running before finishing well behind On Line Deal. He will appreciate the red jacket in his quarter-final.

Another to make light of the damp and soggy track was Maria Collins's hope, Lenson Ray, who saw off a useful field, including Orient Ron, to post 27.19.

Oxford trainer Angie Kibble kept the locals happy by getting 16-1 shot Another Scare through, while Lucrative Game and Captain Bill both ran on well to qualify.

In addition to Tims Crow and Centour Para, I fancy Flywithoutwings and Airtech Rapid to come out on top in their heats.

Tuesday proved quite a night for the bookmakers with seven of the eight Pall Mall favourites - including hotshots Orient Ron, Droopys Keegan, Burberry Boy and Knockeevan Fury - biting the dust.

The biggest bet laid on Tuesday was £2,000 on Knockeevan Fury at 5-4 on to win £1,600.

The popularity of the classic saw a record 96 entries for the 48-runner event.

The semi-finals are next Thursday with the final, plus supporting £500 open races, being screened live by Sky on Tuesday, April 20.

William Hill betting: 9-4 Tims Crow, 11-2 Coolmona Dave, 10-1 Airtech Rapid, Flywithoutwings, 12-1 Knockeevan Fury, Norries Prince, 16-1 Brighton Rock, On Line Deal, 20-1 Blonde Chimes, Clonown Woods, Connoissuer, Droopys Ernest, Kegans Choice, Lenson Ray, Shyan Clarabelle, 25-1 others.