One trainer, one jockey, one horse and one race to watch on Saturday

Trainer

While racing braces for the start of the Cheltenham Festival on Tuesday, Paul Nicholls is looking to keep the blossoming form of his yard rolling into the weekend at Sandown.

The champion trainer has claimed just four winners at the track this season but could add to that tally with eight entries across Saturday's card, three of which will vie for the feature Paddy Power Imperial Cup Handicap Hurdle (2.25).

Graded-scorer Miranda is joined by Hacker Des Places and Listed winner Samarrive for the 2m Grade 3 contest, while Nicholls will also bid for more Graded success when Knappers Hill and Complete Unknown take on the EBF Paddy Power "National Hunt" Novices' Handicap Hurdle Final (1.50).

Miranda (right): one of Paul Nicholls' three contenders for the Imperial Cup at SandownCredit: Edward Whitaker

The trainer will be strong-armed for the Listed Paddy Power Novices' Handicap Chase (3.35) with Danny Kirwan and Flic Ou Voyou, who make up a third of the competitive six-runner field, while Nicholls also runs Switch Hitter (4.10) and a sole Hereford entry with Milan Bridge (2.31).

Jockey

With only two rides booked on Saturday, Daryl Jacob may have a quiet weekend by any leading jockey's standards, but a rare trip to Ayr will be an important stepping stone ahead of next week's festival.

The jockey returns from near three-month spell on the sidelines after suffering from a broken hip and foot in December just in time for the festival, and will have just a handful of rides before the Cheltenham meeting.

With his first ride back at Leicester on Friday, Jacob makes a rare trip to Ayr on Saturday to ride the Stuart Crawford-trained pair of Island Mahee (1.00) and Ballycoose (2.45), who was a winner at the track in December under James Bowen.

As the retained rider for owners Simon Munir and Isaac Souede, Jacob will be hoping a smooth return to racing this weekend will pave the way for festival success, with Munir and Souede set to field a host of runners that include Blue Lord, Concertista and Fusil Raffles next week.

Horse

Paddy Corkery claimed his first success as trainer with Master McShee in December 2020 and the son of Malinas has since gone on to be a horse of a lifetime for the County Waterford trainer.

The novice chaser claimed a breakthrough Grade 1 success for both trainer and jockey Ian Power at Limerick on Boxing Day and since went on to chase home Galopin Des Champs at the Dublin Racing Festival.

Master McShee after winning the Grade 1 Faugheen Novice Chase at LimerickCredit: David Keane (racingpost.com/photos)

With many of the leading Irish players set for Cheltenham, the eight-year-old swerves the festival for Navan, where he lines up against five rivals in the Webster Cup Chase (4.00).

Master McShee drops down to 2m for the first time this season for his course debut, where he bids to continue Corkery's fairytale season in Saturday's Grade 2 contest against last year's runner-up Castlegrace Paddy and Grade 1 winner Notebook.

Race

The Paddy Power Imperial Cup Handicap Hurdle (2.25) headlines Sandown's Saturday card and is set to be a thrilling competitive affair with the biggest field since 2015.

22 runners are entered for the Grade 3 race headlined by Balco Coastal, whose County Hurdle hopes will likely rest on his performance on Saturday. Success for the six-year-old on his handicap debut would mark a welcome return to the winner's enclosure for Nicky Henderson, who has now gone 19 days without scoring.

Last year's winning trainer Dan Skelton may be saving Langer Dan for the festival but will still be in with a live chance with Lucky One, while Onemorefortheroad strives to give Neil King his biggest success this season after finishing second behind Tritonic in the Betfair Exchange Trophy in December.

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