Saturday ITV Racing Tips & Preview

The Sandown course executive have made sure they have undergone plenty of watering in the lead upto this fixture and the odd shower which has fallen in the last 24 hours should ensure the ground is safe for GREGARIOUS (Best price 15-2). The selection has shown excellent determination in winning his last two starts at the Esher venue and remains nicely handicapped as he never wins by far. Leighton Aspell judged the front-running tactics to a nicety last time and, while it is too much to ask for him to be allowed free reign again, the likelihood of a decent gallop should at least help him settle. Landin represents a team that have enjoyed a brilliant spring so he could also be overpriced.

MENORAH (Best price 2-1) defends an incredible record in the bet365 Oaksey Chase and could bring the house down if he manages to score for the fourth successive time. Although he is in the twilight of his career, Menorah’s performances this season suggest he could hand out another beating to some younger rivals. Rested since chasing home Unowhatimeanharry at Newbury over hurdles, Menorah also ran well in the Charlie Hall Chase and his record at this time of year earns him the vote at the expense of Traffic Fluide and Josses Hill.

Connections of Special Tiara may not take too kindly to the volume of watering undertaken at Sandown this week and the Queen Mother Champion Chase winner is overlooked in preference for ALTIOR who should relish conditions and can extend his winning run to 11 with victory here. The form of the latter's success in the Arkle has taken a couple of useful boosts since, not least with the win of Cloudy Dream last Saturday and the race should be run to suit a horse who jumps and travels powerfully and has looked the next big star of jump racing. At odds of around 3-1 on, Altior is beyond the odds of most Saturday players so a small split-stakes play on SAN BENEDETO (Best price 5-1) and VANITEUX (Best price 9-2) without the hot favourite could be the best way to attack the race for those desperate for some action. Henry De Bromhead is without a winner in nearly 30 runners of late and, while they haven't been running badly, his form and the ease in the ground could be a chink of light hoping for a below-par run from his grand chaser.

It is not the usual practice of trainer Neil Mulholland to return a staying chaser like DOING FINE (Best price 9-2) to the track as swiftly as he does today and that hint could be worth heeding. Although the nine-year-old has only been given 10 days to recover from galloping three-and-half miles round Cheltenham, that was just his second run since Christmas which suggests there should be plenty left in the tank for a young horse still largely unexposed over extreme distances. Mulholland is lucky to be three-handed in this afternoon's feature but Doing Fine looks the best of the trio given his profile and I like the booking of recent century-maker Tom Scudamore. This race could still hold the key to the trainers' title but victory for either of the Nicky Henderson duo, Sugar Baron to VYTA DU ROC (Best price 11-1), would be the seal on a magnificent season for the Seven Barrows handler. Slight preference is for the latter who, although yet to recapture his best form this season, has still finished an honourable sixth in the Hennessy behind the likes of Native River and Blaklion and in front of Smad Place and Un Temps Pour Tout. He was only 8-1 to win that race, yet is a bigger priced to beat a weaker field here so he can’t be left to go unbacked.

Frankie Dettori heads to Haydock for two rides and the first of them, EL VIP (Best price 13-8) has an outstanding chance of landing this mile Class 2 event. Connections perhaps took a while to realise that today's trip was the optimum for the son of Pivotal who wound up last season with a smooth well-backed win at Leicester before continuing his progress at Bath on his comeback. He travelled into the race like a good horse that day only for a lack of race sharpness to take its toll and, with that run behind him, he should be ready to go.

There looks potential for a decent gallop here with the likes of Zoravan in the field so tactical speed and a change of gear may be crucial requirements in lifting a decent prize. AFJAAN (Best price 3-1) looks to have both of those attributes within his armoury and he could make up into a very useful performer this term given his stable's record with horses of his profile. There is a chance the Royal Hunt Cup is a primary early-season objective, but in the hope Afjaan is ready to roll first time out, as he was last year, he gains the nod in an open race.

Read Sam Turner's tips in the Daily Mail every day or at www.dailymail.co.uk/racing