Gold Cup Day Tips from Stu Williams at Cheltenham

The Grade 1 Triumph Hurdle, the County Handicap Hurdle and the Grade 1 Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle will precede the Blue Riband event and all three are intriguing races for different reasons.

While the St James’s Place Festival Challenge Cup Open Hunters’ Chase, the Grade 2 Mrs Paddy Power Mares’ Chase and the Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle will bring the curtain down on the 2024 Cheltenham Festival.

Galopin Des Champs will be the star attraction once again as he bids to win back-to-back Gold Cups for Willie Mullins, who will be looking to take the trophy back across the Irish Sea for the fourth time in six years.

The Triumph Hurdle has been blown wide open following the late withdrawal of Sir Gino following a turbulent week for Nicky Henderson’s Seven Barrows inmates.

While Harry Fry will saddle the hugely promising Gidleigh Park in the Albert Bartlett following his impressive victory on Cheltenham’s Trials Day card in January.

An exciting final day to savour. 

KING OF KINGSFIELD had the option of running in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle and it’s significant that connections have decided to take this route. It may also be very shrewd given how the novice Grade 1 hurdles panned out.

The Gigginstown House Stud owned gelding chased home Supreme Novices’ Hurdle hero Slade Steel at Naas in November and placed third behind Wednesday’s easy Gallagher Novices’ Hurdle winner Ballyburn at the Dublin Racing Festival last month - a race in which the aforementioned Slade Steel placed second.

That form clearly reads well after this week’s results and suggests that a mark of 140 could really underestimate King Of Kingsfield, who should be suited by this race given that he’s a strong traveller who possesses a turn of foot. 

King of Kingsfield - 1pt Win @ 5/1

GIDLEIGH PARK is unbeaten in four career outings culminating in a Grade 2 victory over two-and-a-half-miles on Cheltenham’s Trial’s Day card in January and you get the impression that connections are only scratching the surface of his potential.

The form of his Prestbury Park triumph received a boost when runner-up Lucky Place finished fourth in the Coral Cup on Wednesday off a mark of 137 and the extra four furlongs of this contest should bring out further improvement in Harry Fry’s charge.

His Newbury form in December also looks solid as he handed out 6lbs and a nine lengths beating to a subsequent dual scorer in the care of Paul Nicholls.

Gidleigh Park looks every inch a staying chaser in the making and he could well take this en route.

Gidleigh Park - 1pt Win @ 13/2

The Cheltenham Gold Cup will see GALOPIN DES CHAMPS and Fastorslow meet for the fourth time in 12 months with the score currently 2-1 in favour of Martin Brassil’s charge.

Last year’s Ultima Handicap Chase runner-up got the better of the reigning Gold Cup champion at Punchestown last spring and again in the John Durkan Chase in November.

However, Galopin Des Champs set the record straight in the Irish Gold Cup last month and he is a short price to even the score tomorrow.

Willie Mullins’ charge boasts an impressive Cheltenham CV as he easily defeated dual Coral Cup hero Langer Dan in the 2021 Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle and would have won the Turners Novices’ Chase but for a mistake at the penultimate fence.

His only other outing resulted in Gold Cup victory 12 months ago when easily swatting aside the classy Bravemansgame to record a seven lengths victory.

The master of Closutton has already enjoyed a stellar week including passing the 100 Cheltenham Festival winners mark on Wednesday. 

Winning Cheltenham’s blue riband contest for the fourth time in six years would be the perfect ending to such a historic week.

Galopin Des Champs - 1pt Win @ Evens

Henry de Bromhead has celebrated Grade 1 success in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle and Champion Chase this week and he may well sign off with a handicap success courtesy of WATERFORD WHISPERS, who has enjoyed a low key campaign to this point.

The JP McManus owned six-year-old could only place seventh on his racecourse debut in a maiden hurdle at Fairyhouse last April when sent off an 18/1 chance.

However, he ran out a cosy winner on his reappearance at Galway in October and confirmed that promise when returning to Fairyhouse in December.

Waterford Whispers defeated subsequent scorer on both of those occasions and he seemed to enjoy the step-up in trip when defeating the 137 rated Answer To Kayf on the latter occasion.

The promising son of Westerner was only beaten one-and-a-quarter lengths when attempting to concede 8lbs to winner when last sighted at Leopardstown over Christmas and he seems to have been kept back for this race ever since.

A mark of 133 could easily underestimate Waterford Whispers, who won’t be inconvenienced by ground conditions.

Waterford Whispers - 1pt Win @ 4/1