1:15 Epic Value At William Hill Handicap Chase 1m 7f 199y

Haddex Des Obeaux has improved massively since unseating on his chase debut at Newton Abbot a year ago and would have been quietly fancied for the Arkle at Cheltenham but for an injury which saw him miss the spring.

He jumped to his left when a creditable second at Kempton on his second chase start, but that jumping has been sensational in two wins since in handicap company, leading throughout to win at Doncaster and Warwick on contrasting ground.

Haddex Des Obeaux was most impressive in winning at Warwick, a track which does put jumping under pressure, particularly with five fences coming in quick succession in the back straight.

He jumped those fences with rare élanand galloped on strongly to win easily by 19 lengths from Galop de Chasse and Third Time Lucki, and the form has been boosted by subsequent wins for all three of those in behind.

Raised 10lb for his Warwick romp, Haddex Des Obeaux still looks fairly handicapped on that form, but also remains open to progress after just a handful of chase starts, and it’s notable that Gary Moore sends him straight to Cheltenham for his return, which suggests he’s ready to go.

1:50 Masterson Holdings Hurdle 2m 87y

Assuming all eight go to post for the Masterson Holdings Hurdle, I’d be inclined to play Lucinda Russell’s Bois Guillbert each-way. Blueking D’Oroux is clearly the one to beat, but backing the top-rated in this contest down the years has been an expensive business, and the Paul Nicholls-trained son of Jeu St Eloi isn’t guaranteed to be fully wound-up for his return.

Bois Guillbert, unusually for a runner in this race, started out in bumpers and has looked a long-term project to date, giving hope that he will find above-average improvement in his second season.

He certainly took a step forward when winning at Kelso three weeks ago and he clocked a good time in the conditions despite still giving the impression he was learning on the job.

Many successful three-year-old hurdlers are too precocious to be easy to place but Bois Guillbert is bred and built to mature well and is expected to progress enough to be very competitive despite this rise in class.

2:25 Epic Jumps Season At William Hill Handicap Chase 3m 1f

Sam England has her horses in fine form at present and it may pay to stick with the prolific Kinondo Kwetu despite his welter burden.

England took a couple of her chasers to Sedgefield last week and I was encouraged that Tom Creen was able to defy an absence since the spring, while No Cruise Yet had the Durham National won everywhere bar the line, again on his first start since April.

To hammer home the message that her handicappers are more forward than usual, England saddled Fenland Tiger to defy an 11-month absence at Carlisle on Thursday.

Kinondo Kwetu has won six times since switched to fences last summer, with his only poor effort coming when favourite for the Reynoldstown Chase at Ascot in February. Normally a sound jumper, he ran up to his best when a strong-finishing three and a quarter-length third of 16 to Twig in the Summer Cup at Uttoxeter when last seen, despite meeting interference in the run and making a couple of significant errors.

He can race off the same mark here, and with the signs there to suggest he will not lack for fitness, he looks overpriced at double-figure odds.

3:00 Pertemps Network Handicap Hurdle (Pertemps Qualifier) 2m 7f 208y

This qualifier for the Pertemps Final in March looks especially tricky, and there appear to be many chances, with Bashful Boy a marginal pick with fitness guaranteed after his excellent fourth in the Cesarewitch at Newmarket a fortnight ago.

David Pipe’s gelding has a mixed record over hurdles, with his jumping letting him down on consecutive starts last season, but he’s never been presented with a proper test of stamina in this sphere and is the sort to do better for the step up in trip, having shown that he stays very well at Newmarket.

A winner off an 8lb lower mark at Newton Abbot in July over two miles five and a half furlongs, he didn’t get the chance to show what he could do from his revised mark at Fontwell next time when badly hampered in a farcical bypass procedure and then allowed to come home in his own time.

He is much better than that formline suggests, and two wins of the flat this summer show that he’s better than ever at the age of seven. With a rating of 125 currently, he could do with winning one of these in order to qualify for the final and be high enough in the weights to make the cut, and I doubt whether David Pipe would want to keep him on the go through the winter given he’s been pretty busy in recent months.

As a result, this looks his best chance to take advantage of a fair mark, and he’s sure to be off for his life.

4:10 William Hill Lengthen Your Odds Novices’ Chase 3m 110y

All eyes on Flooring Porter here, but he’s one to oppose for me, with horses who switch so late to fences (he’s had four full seasons over hurdles) rarely adapting fully to the larger obstacles, while losing Danny Mullins, who got such a great tune out of a horse who is not easy to steer, can hardly be a positive.

The one to be with at the prices may well be Broadway Boy, who looked a natural chaser when winning an admittedly weaker race at Worcester last month, and that experience may prove enough of an asset to score despite giving weight to horses who would beat him over timber.

As the apparent second string from the Twiston-Davies yard, he will be a bigger price than he should be.

Haddex Des Obeaux 1:15 Cheltenham – 1pt win @ 3/1 (general)

Bois Guillbert 1:50 Cheltenham – 0.5pts e/w @ 12/1 (Bet365, 11/1 general)

Kinondo Kwetu 2:25 Cheltenham – 2pts win/1pt place @ (SkyBet, Paddy Power – 5 places)

Bashful Boy 3:00 Cheltenham – 1pt e/w @ 16/1 (SkyBet, Betfair Paddy Power – 6 places)

Broadway Boy 4:10 Cheltenham – 1pt win @ 11/2 (Hills)