Five key horses to follow on Racing TV on Saturday

Blood Destiny is towards the top of the antepost market for the JCB Triumph Hurdle and he can lay down another Cheltenham Festival marker here after an impressive Irish debut last month at Cork.

The form of that race has worked out well, with runner-up Sir Allen winning easily next time while also-rans in fifth and seventh also picked up next-time out wins. Blood Destiny got better as he went at Cork, too, jumping with greater precision and accuracy as the race progressed and he looks professional and likeable with pretensions of being towards the top – at this admittedly early stage – of the Willie Mullins juvenile pack which boasts some exciting types, most notably the filly Lossiemouth.

Mullins confirmed after Cork that he’s planning a Grade One route with Blood Destiny and victory here could set up a bid at the Spring Juvenile Hurdle at the Dublin Racing Festival early next month ahead of the spring festivals.

He's the pick on official ratings after his romp at Newbury last time and this looks a decent opportunity for a Grade Two breakthrough.

Paint The Dream is unbeaten in three starts at Newbury and, while his form is much the best at that track and his form right-handed significantly lesser – indeed, he hasn’t gone this way round much at all in recent seasons – his tactical versatility might come up trumps here.

Paint The Dream is a two-and-a-half miler who acts over three miles and it’s possible he could pay close attention to likely favourite Pic D’Orhy on the front end while also having the option of dropping in if the early pace is good. Saint Calvados could also run here and he also likes to go forward.

Paint The Dream has backed up wide-margin Newbury wins before, notably last spring when bolting up in the Greatwood Gold Cup and then finishing fourth – beaten 12 lengths – by Fakir D’Oudairies in Grade One company at Aintree with only Hitman and Sceau Royal in front him.

This is an important race for the Fergal O’Brien yard, one which has made remarkable progress in recent years and one which is now looking for greater presence at the upper level of British jumps racing. Victory here would be a first for the stable at Grade Two level in open company over fences.

He’s far from the finished article, but this good prospect still holds strong form claims while offering significant potential for more to come.

Grey Dawning has won four of his five career starts and his novice form reads well here. He looked the winner for most of the straight when runner-up at Aintree on his return, and while the winner of that race disappointed in Grade Two company next time (sent off 11-4) the third finished second in the same race at Sandown. Further down the field, the fifth won next time while the time of the Aintree race was significantly better than the course-and-distance event contested by high-class older hurdlers and won by Dashel Drasher, who has had a great season so far.

Grey Dawning beat good yardstick Lallygag at Exeter on his next start – that one’s sole defeat this term - and then won on handicap debut at Kempton on Boxing Day despite racing too keenly and making novicey errors. The field looked to go too quick and he hit the front plenty soon enough but still stuck on well to the line, once again finishing to good effect. This powerful traveller still has fuel in the tank at the end of his races.

His free-going tendencies were slightly masked in a big-field handicap last time but there is pace on offer here with market rivals Knowsley Road, Givega and Snake Roll having made the running in recent starts. Hopefully he gets a decent set-up and some pace in front of him.

The Skeltons are regularly on the winners’ board at Warwick (trainer Dan has only trained more winners at Uttoxeter) and they have a good Leamington record with two winners from eight runners in the race. Shan Blue also travelled notably well before fading late in the race a few years ago.

He's something of a speculative one, but he’s still lightly-raced for his age over jumps and in a race where there are niggles about those towards the top of the market the early 25-1 quotes warrant a second look at him.

Somewhat surprisingly, this would be a handicap debut over jumps for the dual Grade One winner and one-time Champion Hurdle fancy and, while he’s on a retrieval mission, this is the easiest company he would have kept over jumps by some way for it’s all a competitive big-field handicap.

Things clearly haven’t gone right so far over fences this term and it’s clear that his profile doesn’t look especially compelling coming into this race, but I’d rather merit the decisiveness in drawing stumps with the chasing campaign early and there’s no doubt that when on song Pentland Hills is a particularly quick and slick jumper who travels very powerfully over hurdles.

The step-up in trip to 2m5f on soft ground would concern more than his recent goings-on over fences – snatching defeat from the jaws of victory when beaten by Ballyandy at Haydock in January 2020 is still fairly vivid – but he stayed well on the Flat and showed that most recently when winning over 1m6f after a mammoth lay-off back in September. It was a modest-enough stayers' handicap at Haydock, but he did well to win from off the pace after a troubled passage and the race has actually worked out pretty nicely.

His sire Motivator also has a much better record with progeny over jumps over intermediate distances (17.6% strike-rate over 2m4f/2m5f, 1.21 A/E) than over the minimum trip (13.7% over 2m-2m1f, 0.88 A/E) and as Pentland Hills gets older it's fair to assume that he may not have the toe to lie up over shorter trips and that going over further may suit better.

Provided he gets cover and settles in this big-field race, I can see him travelling well for a long way and entering the straight with a chance on the soft ground – and potentially worse – that he handles.

Nicky Henderson has a good Lanzarote record and he is the only trainer in the last 25 years to run horses in this race rated 140 or higher. He’s run 12 in total, and two have won while three have placed to good figures.

I’ve been looking forward to his return and he looks an interesting one in a much more feasible assignment than last time.

He didn’t win a bumper but his form in that sphere isn’t shabby – particularly at Kempton last March in a race which has worked out well – while he posted a good time on his hurdles debut at Fakenham in October and one comfortably quicker than the class 4 handicap hurdle won by the on-a-roll and now 127-rated Al Zaraqaan. On average, Kaleb was 1.5L quicker per furlong after jumping the first hurdle and around 20 lengths faster to the line from the second-last flight.

Kaleb was pitched into Listed company last time and that was a tough ask, but it gives some sort of indication to the regard in which he’s held and he nearly nicked some black type behind runaway winner and now Grade One scorer Tahmuras, with a lack of racing room late in the Haydock straight not aiding his cause.

He's up 6lb now to a mark of 125, but that rating looks fine and an exploitable one by a trainer with good figures with handicap hurdle debutants. Murphy has four winners from 25 such runners to a decent level stakes profit and performance 72% better than that expected by the market (1.72 A/E).