The Irish have yet another strong hand..
Cheltenham is just a week away and excitement is beginning to reach feverish levels in the horse racing world.
We are set for four days of immense horse racing despite the coronavirus trying its best to intervene.
The Irish will be heading over in their numbers once again to Gloucestershire and have their eyes on the Prestbury Cup again, having drawn 14-14 last year.
They are the current 4/6 favourites to win the Prestbury Cup and with their battalion, it is hard to argue with that price.
They have taken 53% of bets in the market since it opened. It looks like punters aren’t stopping there either, in the last week that figure stands at 60%.
GB are a best price of 2/1 to win the title for the first time, but have quite the challenge on their hands.
Since its inception in 2014, this Anglo-Irish rivalry has been dominated by the visitors. In 2017, the Irish won a record 19 races and backed it up the next year with 17.
Willie Mullins and Gordon Elliott both have had massive parts to play in this dominance and will no doubt have a vast say again with some fierce battalions coming over next week.
Hot favourites like Gordon Elliott’s Envoi Allen and Tiger Roll along with Willie Mullins’ Benie Des Dieux, Appreciate It and Carefully Selected all look very strong in their respective races.
Henry De Bromhead only adds further strength to the Irish challenge with Arkle favourite Notebook, Mares’ Novice favourite Minella Melody and last year’s Albert Bartlett winner, Minella Indo.
The Irish clearly have a very strong hand, but can the British finally land their first Prestbury Cup?
A lot of hope for the cup to stay on home soil will rest with Nicky Henderson. He has some strong favourites, including Shishkin in Supreme Novice Hurdle, which could kick-start the British charge.
He also has the favourites for the Champion Hurdle and RSA Chase in the form of Epatante and Champ. The star of his stable, Altior, is bidding for a third Champion Chase too.
He will have to contend with Phillip Hobbs’ Defi Du Seuil, who also has Ballymore hopeful Sporting John, and Albert Bartlett favourite Thyme Hill.
Colin Tizzard and Paul Nicholls will both have to play their parts too. The likes of Fiddlerontheroof, Lostintranslation and Frodon all look like live chances throughout the week.
The Irish are the rightful favourites and will be very tough to beat. The British contingent will have to be firing on all cylinders to finally get one over on the Irish but it looks a daunting task.
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