2026 Sandown & Wolverhampton Preview

The gutsy Copperhead was a nice winner for us last weekend, advised at 16s. This weekend is our last chance to boost the coffers for Cheltenham, hopefully Dave Stevos can fire in another winner or two. His 2026 Sandown & Wolverhampton preview and tips are below.

1.50 Sandown – Nh Novices Handicap Hurdle Final (Premier)

The ground is currently a mixed bag at Sandown and they haven’t had as much rain as forecast. My best guess is that it will be on the softer side of good to soft so I’ll be going with horses that handle a little bit of cut.

The horse that catches my eye at a big price here is the Joel Parkinson and Sue Smith trained Get On George. Yes, he’s a handicap debutant which is usually a big negative for me, but the vast majority of this field are in the same boat.

This son of Getaway has won two of his four starts over hurdles, on soft at Wetherby (19.5f) and on good ground at Doncaster (19.5f) where be beat the re-opposing Draco Malfo by 2l off level weights. That rival is 3lb better off here but the victory was more emphatic than the winning margin suggests and I think Get On George can uphold that form.

Last time out at Doncaster, Get On George was pulled up on his first try at 3m in a Grade 2 novice at Doncaster. I have no doubt he’s a better horse than he showed that day and the drop back to 2m4f should show him in a much better light. Now, in a race like this there will probably be one or two that have snuck in off better marks but at odds of 28/1, I think it’s well worth taking a chance on Get On George each way.

2026 Sandown & Wolverhampton Tip: Get On George e/w @ 28/1 (5 places) NAP

2.05 Wolverhampton – Midnite Handicap (Class 3)

The interesting one at a half decent price here is Cinque Verde. Trained by Tony Carroll, this prominent racer has been handed a lovely draw in stall 1. A two-time winner here over 5f, she has also won three times over today’s distance of 6f so there are no issues regarding the trip.

This daughter of Sioux Nation lacks a run but she is a mare that has gone well fresh in the past. She won after a 129-day break in February 2024 and after a 161-day absence in January 2025 so her lack of a run isn’t that big of a concern. Also, the fact that Carroll has enlisted the services of Oisin Murphy suggests she’ll be ready to rock on her return.

The one negative is that she has never won off a mark this high but she was only beaten 1.75l off 85 in a Premier Handicap on her final start of 2025 and while a 4lb hike for that seems a touch harsh, this is an easier race on paper. At odds of 12/1, Cinque Verde is the each way selection.

2026 Sandown & Wolverhampton Tip: Cinque Verde e/w @ 12/1

2.27 Sandown – Imperial Cup Handicap Hurdle (Class 2)

Last year Go Dante won this race for the second time and he is back to try to complete the hat-trick. However, he’s now a 10yo, he’s 5lb higher and he’s had a recent wind op so he might well be up against it this time.

The one I was going to take a punt on was Knickerbockerglory but after doing the write up, just as I was about to post he was declared a non-runner. After a rethink, I’ve decided to go with another elder statesman, the 10yo No Ordinary Joe.

By Getaway, this horse seemed to have completely lost his way since leaving Nicky Henderson. On his first five starts for this stable he returned form figures of 9/15/P/10/9 and after he failed to beat a rival home at Haydock in December, Bromley sent him for wind surgery.

Much Better

It didn’t seem to have made much difference on his first run post the procedure at Windsor, but last time out in a hot Ascot handicap he ran a much better race, beaten just over 4l in fifth off 124 and he’s been dropped another 1lb for that effort.

A year ago this horse was beaten just over 2l off 138 in a Warwick handicap, so he is lurking on a very dangerous mark. His only previous run at this venue resulted in a bumper win on soft and he’s 11lb below his last winning mark, with Ben Macey claiming another 5lb too. Now, given his profile he’s no banker to back that last run up but maybe the wind-op has made a difference and if it has, No Ordinary Joe is more than capable of going very well off this mark at odds of 20/1.

2026 Sandown & Wolverhampton Tip: No Ordinary Joe e/w @ 20/1 (6 places) nb

2.42 Wolverhampton – Lincoln Trial Handicap (Class 2)

Last year we were narrowly denied a winner in this race when Farasi Lane just failed to get up. He was trained by Richard Newland and Jamie Insole, who run Knights Gold in this year’s renewal, and though their 4yo son of Dark Angel lacks a recent outing, I am going to take the chance that they have him ready for his seasonal reappearance.

A four-time winner last year, including one on the AW at Kempton, he is in off 86 here, 5lb above the mark off which he won at Chester last September. He will likely need a career best to score off this mark but he’s still a relatively young horse and the fact that they aren’t using a claiming jockey might be an indication that they think he’s capable off this rating (or it could mean he’s out for a spin to get a couple of pounds back).

At odds of 18/1, I’m hoping that the former scenario holds true.

2026 Sandown & Wolverhampton Tip: Knights Gold e/w @ 18/1 (4 places)

3.00 Sandown – Mares’ NHF Flat Race (Listed)

Long time followers will be aware of my aversion to betting on bumpers. However, this is the one race I like to make an exception for. I have a decent record betting on Anthony Honeyball horses in this race, landing place money last year with Easy Love at 14s and in 2021 we landed place money again with Swincombe Fleat at 40s.

Honeyball runs two this time and the impressive heavy ground Wincanton winner, Western Charm, is the shorter of his two runners with Ben Godfrey maintaining the partnership.

However, I am going to take a chance on his other runner, the point-to-point winner Kamille Au Kanada, who will be ridden by Sam Twiston-Davies. This 6yo mare won at Stowlin in May 2025 but was later disqualified for a banned substance. In November 2025 she made amends, landing a four runner Tinahely point by 16l.

Bought for £72,000 after that win, she must have been showing a fair bit at home to justify starting out under Rules in Listed company and the booking of Twiston-Davies catches the eye too (6/33 with 15 top 4 finishes in bumpers for the yard). The one slight concern is that she is wearing a tongue-tie but hopefully, she’ll be fine.

At odds of 16/1, a small e/w bet on Kamille Au Kanada is advised.

2026 Sandown & Wolverhampton Tip: Kamille Au Kanada e/w @ 16/1 (4 places)

I don’t fancy anything at a price in the last two ITV races so we’ll leave it there for today. I’ll be posting a Cheltenham Handicap e/w lucky 15 preview on Sunday and then the preview and tips for Day 1 at Cheltenham will be posted on our blog before 4pm on Monday.

-DaveStevos