The highlight of racing in the UK on Saturday is the Grade 1 Tolworth Hurdle at Sandown for which Son Of Camas is unproven but has the potential to prevail at +275 with Bovada. On ratings and form, Indefatigable is the horse to back at +200 with Bovada to win the listed mares' hurdle. The veteran's handicap chase is restricted to horses aged 10 and older and Jepek can win the battle of the stalwarts at +350 with Bovada. The treble pays almost +4800 with Bovada.

The jumps season has now entered the phase in which it's all about the countdown to Cheltenham. The Festival is the biggest betting meeting of the year. There are 28 competitive races over four days in the second week in March. The meeting was extended to four days in 2005. Money talks but surely it would be a mistake to add a fifth day. The quality would be diluted and the races would lose their scarcity value. The top 20 UK turnover races in 2019 included 10 at the Cheltenham Festival.

The Tolworth Hurdle is a key Cheltenham trial. Since 2016, two of the winners have also won at the Festival. Yorkhill and Summerville Boy won the race in 2016 and 2018 and then won novices' contests at the National Hunt meeting that matters most. This Saturday's Sandown feature is a novice hurdle for horses aged four and older. The race distance is two miles and there are eight obstacles. Each winner in the last five years was aged 5 or 6. The last winner aged 4 was in 1999.

Here are some 10 year betting trends for the Tolworth Hurdle:

• The average price of the winners: just over +620.
• Range of Starting Prices: -225.02 to +900.
• Number of outright and joint favourites: 5.
• Odds-on favourites: 2.
• Double- figure priced winners: 0.
• Most common range of odds: 4 winners from +150 to +350.

Each of the winners in the last decade had run in the previous four weeks but none had won at Sandown. All but one of the winners won over hurdles before the Sandown race. The leading trainer since 2009 is Nicky Henderson with four wins but Colin Tizzard trained the winner twice in the last three years. Both horses were ridden by Tom O'Brien but the leading jockey is Barry Geraghty with three wins between 2011 and 2015. Each winning horse carried 11-07.

Fiddlerontheroof was an impressive winner over the course and distance on his last start. The horse looks progressive and an improver often wins the race. Son of Camas made a winning start over hurdles at Newbury in November and beat a decent horse. The time was impressive and the horse is trained by Henderson. Hang In There looks a smart hurdling recruit but has something to find on the ratings.

Son Of Camas is the selection for a win and then all roads lead to Cheltenham. If any horse produces an eye-catching win, a novice hurdle at the Festival could be the next port of call.

Indefatigable looks like the answer for the Unibet Mares' Hurdle at 12.45. Silver Forever is a useful bumper horse who has graduated with some success to hurdling. The horse has won twice from three starts over the smaller obstacles and could improve again in this division. Fleur Irlandaise has decent form in France and finished second in a mares' race at Cheltenham in November. However, Indefatigable has the best form and is a confident tip. If the horse was pitched in against the boys at Cheltenham she would get a mares' allowance.

One of the attractions of National Hunt racing is the longevity of some horses. The public's affinity with experienced horses is exemplified by the popularity of chases for veterans. The Sandown race for older chasers on Saturday is worth almost £62,000 to the winner, thanks to a title sponsorship.

Theatre Guide races off a winnable handicap mark while Dark Flame has useful form for a race at this level. Several runners are now on a decline but Jepek is an improving horse who produced a career best effort on his last start. There are other low-mileage runners in the field who could be good enough but Jepek ticks most of the boxes.