Ramses De Teillee will attempt to go one better than 12 months ago when the veterans get the chance to shine at Warwick on Saturday.

The Unibet Veterans’ Handicap Chase was the headline attraction on last weekend’s abandoned Sandown card, but all is not lost for some of the sport’s most popular warriors, with the race rerouted to the Midlands with a first-prize of £38,580 on offer.

David Pipe claimed the first ever running of this event with Soll in 2016 and came close to adding to his tally 12 months ago as Ramses De Teillee failed to reel in Mel Rowley’s shock scorer Wishing And Hoping.

Correcting the record has been top of the agenda ever since and having been kept fresh for the contest, a stroke of fortune sees the race take place at a venue where the gallant grey has impressed in the past.

“It’s great that they have rescheduled it and it is a very popular race,” said Pipe.

“This has been the plan all season and he’s in good form and won round Warwick last year so we know he handles the track.

“He goes well fresh which is a positive and we’re looking forward to it. It would be lovely if he could go one better this year and he’s in flying form at home.”

There is a stacked field of 16 heading to the start of this three-mile event but none arrive in better form than Nigel Twiston-Davies’ Good Boy Bobby, who pounced late to prevail against Aye Right at Chepstow before adding to his tally at Sandown.

Now owned by Dash Grange Stud, the 11-year-old will bid for a hat-trick in first-time cheekpieces which connections hope will help him negotiate the early stages of the contest.

“Bobby has been brilliant this year and this has been the target since Jayne McGivern (of Dash Grange Stud) bought him and kindly sent him back to us,” said Willy Twiston-Davies, assistant to his father.

“He’s wearing cheekpieces because it is going to be a bigger field and a lot more competitive than his last two, so hopefully it will help him get a good start and travel over the first few.

“He looks in very, very good form at home and the track and trip will be perfect and we’re expecting another bold bid.”

Venetia Williams’ Cepage and Olly Murphy’s Thomas Darby both arrive having tasted victory in their most recent outing.

The latter, who was fourth in the Chepstow event won by Good Boy Bobby on his return, took a good step forward to deny the reopposing Mill Green over track and trip and possesses a touch of class that could see him thrive even at this late stage of his career.

“He’s in good form and this has been the race we have targeted ever since he won at Warwick the last day and we’re looking forward to running him,” said Murphy.

“He has course-and-distance form and fingers crossed he will have a good chance in a competitive race.

“It will be his first run in what would be a really big-field competitive handicap over fences, but for his age I think he is pretty unexposed over the larger obstacles.”

Harriet Graham and Gary Rutherford’s Aye Right has had to settle for minor honours behind both Good Boy Bobby and Thomas Darby so far this term.

The consistent 11-year-old will be partnered by the talented 7lb conditional Dylan Johnston as Graham and Rutherford seek to further reduce Aye Right’s burden and connections dream of landing a first victory since the 2021 Rehearsal Chase.

“We made the decision to put a 7lb claimer on because he is not a big horse and we have always felt the handicapper has never really relented on him and we just thought we should try it,” said Graham.

“Dylan is one of the good up-and-coming conditionals, so we thought we would give it a go and we’re quite excited about it.

“The handicapper has let him off a little bit but it’s taken a lot of asking. Even to qualify for the race, because the qualifiers are 0-150 and he was 154 I think, I had to get the handicapper to drop us so we could qualify.

“He has relented slightly, but when you compare him to Good Boy Bobby who beat us at Chepstow and we beat him two years ago in the Rehearsal, I think he has been a lot more lenient with him and he’s never gone up to the same extent that Aye Right ever went off.

“We know Aye Right always runs an honest race and because of his front-running style, he’s hardly hiding, but it’s great to have a horse like that.”

Fellow northern raider Top Ville Ben went close at Aintree on Boxing Day and is another heading into the race with good form to his name, with Emma Lavelle’s De Rasher Counter and Richard Hobson’s Lord Du Mesnil others to make the podium prior to this.

Meanwhile, set to shoulder top-weight is Kim Bailey’s Two For Gold, with the handler thrilled to give his high-class staying chaser the chance to compete amongst his fellow elder statesman.

“It’s a very competitive race and the poor old chap has to carry top-weight,” said Bailey.

“If he finished in the first four I would be thrilled to be quite honest, but having said that he seems in a very good place.

“Veterans’ races are very popular and I’m a big supporter of them.”

Enqarde has a date with Haydock’s Betfred Tommy Whittle Handicap Chase after getting back to winning ways at Warwick on Wednesday.

Trained by Dr Richard Newland, the nine-year-old gave David Pipe’s Remastered a 10-length beating in the well-known staying handicap in 2021 but has struggled to hit the same heights since.

However, he booked a return to the Merseyside contest on December 23 when making a long-awaited return to the winner’s enclosure in the Ignite Incentives Handicap Chase – with the 10-1 shot showing plenty of guts to get the better of Docpickedme in a pulsating finish.

Charlie Skinner, member of joint owners Off The Clock Partners, said: “He had a wind operation over the summer and he has come right again. He had not been right since winning the Tommy Whittle, so that is why he had his third wind operation. 

“First time out he is not normally so good, so we didn’t have thousands on him! Jumping the last we thought at least he has got third, but he is a really tough horse and he was given a peach of a ride (by Charlie Hammond). 

“Haydock Park suits him, and I think the plan will be to go back to the Tommy Whittle after that.”

The future could be bright for Alan King’s Helnwein (10-11 favourite), who put his bumper experience to good use to oblige favourite backers in the Watch On Racing TV Novices’ Hurdle.

King said: “He is a horse that we like and he has done everything so easily at home. He does everything on the bridle at home and it would have been no surprise if he got beat today as a lot of mine have needed a run.

“He has done a lot of strengthening through the summer and the boys did a great job last season in only letting me run him in bumpers.

“There is a lot more to come from him and he is very much a work in progress. Hopefully he will build on that.

“I think we will stick at two miles for the time being, but he will get further in time. We could look to see if we can find one of those valuable introductory hurdles, but he will need between three and four weeks between his races.

“I needed to find some good horses, but last season’s bumper horses are the best I’ve had for a long time and he is one of the nicer ones.”

Johnny Burke enjoyed a double on the card, steering Henry Daly’s Rockinastorm (4-1) to victory in the Visit racingtv.com Novices’ Handicap Chase before adding to his tally aboard Ben Case’s Annie Day (7-1) in the Visit racingtv.com Novices’ Handicap Chase.

There was also a sighting of the Grand National-winning colours of Earth Summit as Nigel Twiston-Davies’ Supasunrise (4-1) claimed the 100% Racing TV Profits Back To Racing Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Chase in the hands of Finn Lambert.

“That was good as he really kept on plugging away,” said Twiston-Davies.

“The last day at Southwell everything just went wrong and he was jumping out to the right. We gave him a bit of physiotherapy and here we are. 

“I think we could step him up to three miles back on better ground, so we have options with him going forward.”