Goodwood Tips Today: Oddschecker's Most Backed Horses on Day 1

The 2026 Glorious Goodwood Festival gets underway on Tuesday with a quality seven-race card featuring elite sprinters, middle-distance stars and some of Britain's most exciting two-year-olds.

The opening day is headlined by the Group 2 Lennox Stakes, where a competitive field of milers and seven-furlong specialists will battle for one of the festival's most prestigious prizes. Earlier in the afternoon, the Group 2 Vintage Stakes offers a glimpse into the future, with several highly regarded juveniles looking to enhance their Classic credentials.

The Goodwood Cup may be the marquee event later in the week, but Day 1 still promises plenty of intrigue with competitive handicaps and valuable Listed contests complementing the Group races.

We've taken a closer look at where the punters are placing their bets and which horses are catching the eye across four of Tuesday's biggest races. While some runners have emerged as clear favourites, there are also a few value picks that could reward punters willing to look beyond the market leaders.

13:50 Goodwood

TIP 1: DIEGO EL QUESO - 1pt

Best odds of 4/1 at bet365 while publishing.

The market leader for the 13:50 is Diego El Queso, and it's easy to see why tipsters keep coming back to him. He's turning up in career-best form with a strong jockey booking locked in, and that combination has him sitting at the top of most shortlists for this one.

He's not the only name doing the rounds, though. Noble Horizon has taken a notable step forward since a change of stable, Al Aali looks interesting back in headgear after winning last time out with the blinkers fitted, and Night Breeze arrives with a favourable draw and form figures that read well.

There's also a case for the Irish raider in this field that's worth weighing up. Three runs this year and solid form throughout - a winning effort two starts back, with that runner-up now rated 14lb higher, followed by a close-up second three weeks ago while conceding weight to two useful three-year-olds, one of whom had franked the form with a big run at Royal Ascot. With no youngsters in this particular handicap and a strong booking in the saddle, he's the type who shouldn't be far away when it matters.

TIP 2: AL HUDAIBA - 1pt

Best odds available of 15/8 at William Hill/bet365 while publishing.

Al Hudaiba is the standout across the entire card according to the consensus, and the numbers back that up - three wins from four starts, with the latest coming in a Group 2. That's about as strong a platform as you'll find in a competitive field.

The key line for today is the booking of blinkers for the first time. That's often a signal connections are looking for an extra yard of improvement, and given the pattern-race form already on the board, there's a feeling this could be the day it clicks into place. He won a Group 2 at Newmarket just 17 days ago and, even shouldering a 3lb penalty for that success, he's still fancied to follow up. Recent months have brought a healthy profit for those following him, and that trend looks set to continue.

TIP 3: QIRAT - 1pt

Best odds of 7/2 at William Hill while publishing.

The market's shaping up as a two-horse race between the tipster favourite and a course specialist with serious course-and-distance claims.

Lake Forest is the one catching most of the attention, with tipsters pointing to eye-catching cruising speed that should suit this track down to the ground, backed by a strong recent profit record that's hard to ignore.

But Qirat has to be part of the conversation. A record of 3-3 at this course, including landing this very race last year, is a formidable statistic, and he arrives on the back of a Group 3 win at York last month. Course form of that consistency at this level is rare, and it's the kind of profile that can't be dismissed just because the market's settled elsewhere.

TIP 4: TWILIGHT CALLS - 1pt EW

Best odds of 7/1 at Betfred while publishing.

The headline market move goes toward Twilight Calls, fresh off a win last time out, with Lexington Blitz - a past winner at this course - fancied to bounce back, and Adrestia given a real look now Oisin Murphy is back on board after a quiet season.

Dig a little deeper into Twilight Calls, though, and there's a story that goes beyond "won last time out." He returned from the best part of eight months off last May carrying a mark 16lb higher than the one he races off today, and that comeback campaign threw him into three top-level 5f sprints that were always going to be a stretch. From there, connections switched him to 6f for the rest of last season and took him to Meydan, again racing mostly over that trip. Back in Britain, he resumed off a mark of 82, had a tune-up on the all-weather, then dropped back to 5f on turf - and the form since has been rock solid, with a cheeky, well-judged success last time out.

He's already run well twice at this course, unlucky not to have gone even closer on both occasions, and the visor that's been fitted for his last three starts stays on. All of that points to a horse racing to a lower mark than his true form suggests, with a jockey in Saffie Osborne who clearly knows how to get the best out of him. The one caveat: he's a confirmed hold-up horse, so a bit of racing luck and a clear run through the field will go a long way to deciding whether he can follow up.