Predictions for the weekend

Starting early this week as two of the biggest sporting events that take place on British soil get underway tomorrow - The Open Championship and the Ashes Test at Lords.

Like most of the pundits I am not going to make a radical prediction for the winner of the Open at Turnberry as I am predicting Tiger Woods. The only (slight) disadvantage that Tiger has is that it is not a course he has played before, because it last hosted the Open in 1994 before his burgeoning talent had burst onto the scene.

I am going for two each-way bets (paying down to eighth place) and though it is more in hope than expectation of a British win in a major for the first time in ten years, the two predictions are for the Englishmen Ian Poulter and Lee Westwood.

With the excitement having died down from last weekend's Ashes Test in Cardiff, the next installment begins at the home of English cricket tomorrow (subject to the weather of course). It is 75 years and 19 matches since England last won an Ashes Test at Lords and so it would be remiss of me to predict them as winners though records are there to be broken. Therefore, and taking the weather forecast into account I am predicting a draw which following England's escape on Sunday would probably be better for them than the Aussies.

To make the predictions for this Test a bit more interesting (the cricket doesn't need to be) I am also going to predict that Kevin Pietersen will make a century in the match, assuming he doesn't throw away his wicket when well set as is his wont! Breaking news is that Freddie Flintoff has arranged for a press conference later today and I hope that the news is not bad and that he will be fit both for this test and the remainder of the series, maybe announcing his retirement after the series, though again I hope not.

International Rugby Union is back on Saturday with the beginning of the tri-nations and the first match between the New Zealand All Blacks and the Australian Wallabies. Though the match is in Auckland I am going for a Wallaby win based on what I saw during their earlier tests this summer and whilst McCaw is back for the All Blacks there back-line doesn't look that potent without Dan Carter - no doubt famous last words!

The Moto GP season resumes at the Sachsenring in Germany this weekend and like predicting Tiger Woods in the golf I am sticking with another great champion of the last decade (if not all time) and predicting a Valentino Rossi win.

Final prediction for the weekend is the Tour de France which is continuing in earnest across the middle of the country. The tour is in it's "calm before the storm" stage at the moment as the riders head towards the Alps and Mont Ventoux where the winner will no doubt come to the fore. As such I am predicting another Mark Cavendish win in today's fairly flat stage which will enable him to equal Barry Hoban's British record that has stood since 1975 of 8 tour stage victories.

That's it for this week and in summary the predictions are as follows:

The Open Championship

Tiger Woods to win at 13/5
Ian Poulter Each Way at 30/1 (paying first 8 places)
Lee Westwood Each Way at 28/1 (paying first 8 places)

The Ashes Test at Lords

England and Australia to draw at 20/19
Kevin Pietersen to hit a century in the test at 7/2

Tri-Nations Rugby

Australia to beat New Zealand in Auckland at 6/4

Moto GP in Germany

Rossi to win at 6/5

Tour de France (Stage 11)

Cavendish to win at 9/4