Cheltenham Festival Tips: Expert Cheltenham Tips

Cheltenham Festival Ante Post Tips – Cheltenham Festival 2024

Date	Time	Race	Horse	Bet Tip
Tuesday 12 March 2024	15:30	The Champion Hurdle	Constitution Hill	Place Bet
Wednesday 13 March 2024	15:30	The Queen Mother Champion Chase	El Fabiolo	Place Bet
Thursday 14 March 2024	15:30	The Stayers Hurdle	Marie’s Rock	Place Bet
Friday 15 March 2024	15:30	The Cheltenham Gold Cup	Gerri Colombe	Place Bet

The first day of Cheltenham’s showpiece meeting sees the Champion Hurdle take centre stage and, after his imposing win in 2023, it’s hard to see any other winner outside of Constitution Hill (4/5). The Queen Mother Champion Chase takes place on Wednesday and El Fabiolo (3/1) could be on course to pick up another famous win at Cheltenham after his win in the Arkle at the 2023 festival.

Marie’s Rock (16/1) attempt to retain her Mares’ Hurdle ending in disappointment but there was talk of her running in the Stayers Hurdle before the decision to run in the Mares’ Hurdle. once again. A poor showing could convince Nicky Henderson that a shot at the Stayers Hurdle in 2024 is the way to go though.

The Cheltenham Gold Cup is the highlight event of the week and takes place on Friday. There will be plenty of speculation over the runners in the lead up to the event, and Galopin Des Champs could well try and make it another win in the event but Gerri Colombe (10/1) showed real class in the Brown Advisory, despite being pipped at the post by the Real Whacker. His chances of Gold Cup glory are already being talked up and it could prove prudent to jump on an inflated price early on.

Tips to help you pick the winning horse at Cheltenham

The Cheltenham Festival is often referred to as the greatest show on turf, and it is easy to see why it has been attached to this label. The best Jumps horses from both sides of the Irish Sea do battle across 28 races, with thousands of racing enthusiasts in attendance roaring them home.

Not only is the action on the track fierce, but the Cheltenham betting is just as competitive, as punters strive for winners across the four days of the Festival.  Here at GG, our experts have delved into the Cheltenham Festival cards, producing their Cheltenham tips for all 28 races.

Every punter has their own unique method when it comes to selecting a horse to place a bet on. Whether you are one for studying the form or simply following a name or a particular silk colour, there is no right and wrong answer in finding a potential winner. The Cheltenham Festival provides punters with 28 enthralling races to get their teeth stuck into over the four days, and with plenty of top Equine talent on display, We have provided three key pointers to consider when looking for that fantastic Festival winner.  These Cheltenham Festival tips are going to help you make informed betting decisions.

Ground conditions

The likely ground conditions and forecasted going can be a real asset for punters when it comes to determining which horse will thrive come post time.

The 2018 Cheltenham Festival saw the meeting kick-off on official going described as heavy, which was the first time since 1982. The opening Supreme Novices’ Hurdle contest was won by Summerville Boy at 9/1 who had previously landed the Tolworth Hurdle at Sandown on heavy going a month prior.

Ground conditions can change on a daily basis when the Cheltenham Festival takes centre stage but it is certainly something to consider prior to placing your Cheltenham bets.

Trainer

The Irish trainers have been the ones to focus on in recent seasons with Willie Mullins landing the Leading Trainer award at last year’s Festival. That was the fifth successive year he has won the award, and the tenth time in the last twelve years.

Trainers often target particular contests at the Festival with their runners and the likes of Willie Mullins’ contingent are often well found in the betting market for the feature Festival contests, however, some trainers have a formidable record in the ultra-competitive handicaps across the four days.

This brings us on nicely to another Irish handler, Gordon Elliot. Runners from his Cullentra base have often performed on the highest stage in March, and in particular the Pertmeps Network Final Hurdle on Day 3. The trainer has won three of the last five renewals of the 3mile handicap event and astonishingly, his other previous seven runners entered in this contest all went on to place in the Grade 3 race.

Jockey

The 2021 Cheltenham Festival was a year to remember for Rachael Blackmore who became the first female rider to be crowned leading jockey, registering a fantastic six winners across the four days including the Champion Hurdle when she partnered superstar mare Honeysuckle to an effortless victory.

Last year saw Willie Mullins’ top jockey Paul Townend ride the most winners, landing an impressive five winners for the second year in a row, including two sensational doubles on the second and fourth days of the tournament.

Jockey bookings can be a useful pointer for any punter, especially so at the Festival where trainers often have more than one entry in a particular race. The stable jockey often has a first preference when it comes to deciding which horse to ride for their yard and can often point you in the direction of their most fancied runner.

Age of The Cheltenham Festival Gold Cup winner past 15 years

Year	Winning Horse	Age
2007	Kauto Star	7
2008	Denman	8
2009	Kauto Star	9
2010	Imperial Commander	9
2011	Long Run	6
2012	Synchronised	9
2013	Bobs Worth	8
2014	Lord Windermere	8
2015	Coneygree	8
2016	Don Cossack	9
2017	Sizing John	7
2018	Native River	8
2019	Al Boum Photo	7
2020	Al Boum Photo	8
2021	Minella Indo	8
2022	A Plus Tard	8
2023	Galopin Des Champs	7

Cheltenham Festival Favourites and Predictions – Who will win the Gold Cup 2024?

It might be almost a year out but the Gold Cup is one of the biggest races of the jump season. Our Expert editor will be looking at the antepost market over the coming days and letting us know his selections.

The Cheltenham Racecourse 

Cheltenham Racecourse has a capacity of 73,000 with its most prestigious meeting in the season being the Cheltenham Festival which features the top equine talent in Britain and Ireland battling it out for the top Grade 1 races in the NH calendar.

The course itself has two separate tracks that run alongside each other, The Old Course and The New Course. The Old Course is used on the first two day’s of the Cheltenham Festival and the last two day’s are held on The New Course.

The Old Course

The Cheltenham Old Course is the original course that covers a shorter and less demanding circuit than that of The New Course. This course is favoured by the horses running in the opening two days as it generally benefits the speedier types before the New Course takes over for the last two day’s of the Festival.

The New Course

The New Course offers a longer and wider racetrack than that on its sister course, benefitting the stronger and durable staying types in races such as The Stayers Hurdle on Day 3 and The Cheltenham Gold Cup on Day 4.

Cross Country

Cheltenham also has a cross-country track which is situated inside the main racecourse and hosts the Cross Country Chase on Day 3 of the Festival which has been made famous in recent seasons by dual Grand National winner Tiger Roll who has won the event three times in the last four seasons.