John Ingles provides an overview of the key things to note on Saturday.
Alpha weighted to turn Cheltenham form around
Paul Nicholls got 2026 off to a good start with three winners on New Year’s Day and he can keep that up with Jubilee Alpha who looks the clear pick of the weights in Sandown’s listed hurdle for mares (14:25).
Jubilee Alpha is a dual winner at this level already over hurdles, including at Cheltenham last April when winning readily under a penalty for her third victory in her novice campaign. She has run in a couple of mares’ handicaps this season, giving lumps of weight to another progressive type, Sweet Caryline, at Wincanton and then shaping better than the result when fifth at Cheltenham last time, earning the ‘Horse In Focus’ flag.
Waited with, Jubilee Alpha made good progress wide in the straight and, after being short of room briefly, was keeping on when blundering at the last before her effort flattened out. That race was won by Nurse Susan who is among Jubilee Alpha’s rivals again here, though crucially they now meet on very different terms. Jubilee Alpha was giving a stone to Nurse Susan at Cheltenham but has to concede just a couple of pounds here. That puts Jubilee Alpha 8 lb clear on Timeform's weight-adjusted ratings and she can come out on top ahead of Nurse Susan this time.
Credo looks interesting back in headgear
Anthony Honeyball won the Veterans’ Handicap Chase (15:05) in 2020 with Jepeck and did so again in 2024 with Sam Brown, who won a rescheduled edition at Warwick and was runner-up at Market Rasen last year when the final again had to be moved. This time Honeyball has three qualifiers, with much the most interesting being the mare Credo.
Not only is she reunited with Harry Cobden for the first time this season, she is also fitted with a visor for the first time since last term when she won two of her four starts in the headgear with Cobden in the saddle. Both those wins, at Exeter and Carlisle, came in veterans’ chases, on the first occasion beating stablemate Gustavian into second with last year’s winner of this race Copperhead further back. Both those rivals are in the field again here.
Credo has shaped as though in better heart than her two efforts this season might suggest, finishing third to Gustavian in the Badger Beers Handicap Chase at Wincanton and fourth in the Berkshire National at Ascot. Only a pound higher than when successful at Carlisle last spring, Credo looks of strong interest back in the headgear.
Bin Ajwad can complete Southwell four-timer
While a better than 20% strike rate is pretty much the norm for the biggest Flat yards, it’s less common for other stables to win with that sort of consistency, so James Tate’s strike rate of 22% in 2025 is worthy of note.
One inmate who was a big factor in that statistic was likeable three-year-old Bin Ajwad who ended his campaign with a hat-trick in handicaps at Southwell. He can make that a four-timer over the same course and distance off top weight in Southwell’s mile handicap (19:00).
Unraced at two, Bin Ajwad got off the mark on his handicap debut in September and completed his hat-trick with a useful effort in November, finding extra when tackled in the final furlong and going on to win by half a length from Mr Mistoffelees in what looked strong-looking form for the time of year. Fourth-placed Tribal Wisdom won his next two starts at Wolverhampton and meets Bin Ajwad, who has the ‘Horse In Focus’ flag, again here. Going the right way and clearly possessing a good attitude, Bin Ajwad can go in again.
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