Sir Alex Ferguson Horses at Cheltenham Festival

Sir Alex Ferguson will be out to replicate his success at Cheltenham in 2025 as the legendary football manager gets set to do it all again in March, 2026.

The former Manchester United boss tasted success for the first time as an owner in 2024, thanks to Monmiral, a 25/1 shot in the Pertemps Network Final Handicap Hurdle before Protektorat clinched the Ryanair Chase to seal a dream double on the same day.

The winning theme continued into the 2025 festival, as Caldwell Potter came out on top in the Jack Richards Novice Limited Handicap Chase, on the penultimate day.

We are only a month out from Cheltenham Festival 2026, so there's no doubt Sir Alex will have all eyes on producing his best result as an owner to date. Here’s everything you need to know about his horses and what we can expect this time around.

Sir Alex Ferguson’s Horses at the Cheltenham Festival

"I've waited 20 years and now had two winners in 40 minutes," Sir Alex Ferguson famously said at the 2024 Cheltenham Festival, and with another victory recorded in 2025, could he make it three in a row in 2026?

A long-standing racing lover, Sir Alex owns several horses alongside co-owners Ged Mason and John and Lisa Hales.

In total, Ferguson owns 32 horses, and following on from the success in March 2024 at Cheltenham, the Scot enjoyed more success at the racecourse last November. Il Ridoto cruised to the Paddy Power Gold Cup, the feature event at the Cheltenham November Meeting, by four-and-a-half lengths. This was followed up by a sensational victory from L’Eau du Sud in the two-mile novice chase.

This momentum was carried into this year, as Caldwell Potter won the Jack Richards Novice Limited Handicap Chase, before Hitman claimed the William Hill Old Roan Limited Handicap Chase title in October 2025 at The Showcase Meeting at Cheltenham.

While the horses are yet to be officially announced for 2026, with the likes of Hitman, Caldwell Potter, Il Ridoto and Protektorat expected to be in contention, could it be another festival to remember for the 83-year-old?

Sir Alex Ferguson at Cheltenham Festival: The Key Highlights

Without a doubt, the 2024 Cheltenham Festival is where Sir Alex Ferguson came into his own.

Monmiral’s stunning victory in the Pertemps Network Final Handicap Hurdle, which had a prize pot of £56,270, was followed up just 40 minutes later with the 17/2 shot Protektorat clinching an expected victory in the Ryanair Chase – claiming a staggering £211,013 in the process.

Ferguson had six horses go in 2024, with Hitman, L’Eau Du Sud, Sonigino, and Il Ridoto making up the rest of the runners. The Manchester United legend jumped for joy at his victories, despite having a broken rib which he sustained saluting his win with Spirit Dancer in Bahrain in 2023.

With another five runners in 2025, Sir Alex claimed another huge success in the Jack Richards Novice Limited Handicap Chase, as Caldwell Potter became his third winner, while topping up his prize pot by another £64,300 in the process.

Horses Owned by Sir Alex Ferguson Competing at Cheltenham Festival

We anticipate that Sir Alex Ferguson will have plenty of runners at the 2026 Cheltenham Festival. However, we won’t know the full extent of the line-up until closer to the four-day extravaganza.

For reference, we have listed all the horses that competed at Cheltenham Festival 2025 under the ownership of Sir Alex, so you can get a better understanding of what to expect:

Monmiral (FR)

Kalif du Berlais (FR)

Hitman (FR)

Il Ridoto (FR)

Protektorat (FR)

L’Eau du Sud (FR)

Caldwell Potter (FR)

Potters Charm (IRE)

Notable Horses from Sir Alex Ferguson’s History

Prior to his success at the 2024 Cheltenham Festival, Sir Alex Ferguson’s horse have enjoyed former glories.

Perhaps one of Sir Alex Ferguson’s pride and joys of his horse racing ownership career was Rock of Gibraltar. Named European Horse of the Year in 2002, Rock of Gibraltar was the first horse to claim seven consecutive Group 1 victories in the Northern Hemisphere. This included famous wins in the Irish 2000 Guineas and Prix du Moulin de Longchamp in May and September 2002 respectively.

Next up is Caldwell Potter, who despite only competing at one Cheltenham Festival, has already amassed one victory from as many races at the event. The 7-year-old is in incredible form in the build up to Cheltenham 2026, with five wins from his last eight runs.

If Caldwell Potter has another successful festival, he could quickly become Sir Alex's most coveted horse, with the opportunity to add to further glory in the years to come.

Sir Alex Ferguson at Cheltenham Festival 2024

After success at the Saudi Cup with Spirit Dancer, Sir Alex and co went on to have their most successful Cheltenham Festival to date in 2024.

In a dramatic 40 minutes of racing, Sir Alex clinched success with Monmiral at 25/1 before Protektorat at 17/2. While his remaining horses didn’t quite reach the heights of Monmiral and Protektorat, there was success to be had later in the year at the Cheltenham November Meeting.

Those two victories saw Fergie claim a share of £267,283 and he was understandably over the moon with the outcome on a special afternoon at Cheltenham.

He said: "It's unbelievable, isn't it? It's a special place. This is like the Derby or the FA Cup final.

"Of course it's not the same as winning at football, that was my life, I was immersed in that, this is what I do for pleasure so it's a different feeling. I don't have to worry about it, I leave that to the trainer."