An early start at Sandown today, with the ongoing dry weather likely causing frustration for trainers, as if someone had trodden all over their toes.
Sandown has taken the step of watering the chase course, so it’s best to consider the going as good, with good to soft ground likely for the two picks.
Samuel Spade could be set for a strong comeback after ending last season on a disappointing note at the Cheltenham April meeting.
Reviewing his form suggests he may be best suited to good ground.
He secured a commanding 16-length victory as a novice at Huntingdon on a sound surface and later won a handicap over hurdles at the same venue last spring on similarly good ground, off a mark of 122.
However, beyond those two wins, his standout performance came at Taunton over 2m3f.
In that race, he impressively made up ground from off the pace to win comfortably.
His jumping, which hasn’t always been consistent, was solid at the last hurdle on that occasion, and notably, the ground was good to soft, which bodes well for today.
I have no qualms about backing runners from Ben Pauling’s yard, and he’s opted for Callum Pritchard to claim a valuable 10lbs in this conditionals’ race.
Pritchard is in form, having recently ridden a winner for Rebecca Curtis at Chepstow.
Looking at the 14:50 Sandown 2m Handicap Hurdle, four out of the seven runners in the field come with recent race fitness, though one of them has been running on the Flat.
Peking Opera, in particular, might relish the return to Sandown. He won his novice hurdle at this track last February on good to soft ground, similar to what he’ll face this afternoon.
In that small-field event, he would have benefited from a stronger pace, as he settled keenly off a slow gallop on the inside.
Nonetheless, he made a smooth move up the rail and travelled strongly throughout, suggesting he could handle a mark higher than today’s.
His tenacity was on display in that novice win, where he outbattled The Good Doctor, who had outjumped him at the last.
The ground conditions could be key for him today, and a return to Sandown is a significant positive.
His recent Flat runs in the Cumberland Lodge and at Kempton were underwhelming, where he appeared more like a social runner, so those efforts can be easily overlooked.
Although he fell in the Adonis Hurdle last winter when weakening late, and there’s a possibility he could be turning a bit sour, his trainer Gary Moore has opted to equip him with first-time cheekpieces today.
As a horse who was once quite promising on the Flat under Aidan O’Brien, he looks well-handicapped off a mark of 114, despite this being a challenging race.
