Ginger Joe's Cheltenham Festival Day 1 Premium Tips

Ginger Joe's Day One Cheltenham Ante-Post Porfolio

National Hunt Chase 

Ante Post Tip: Newton Tornado (0.75pts E/W)
Price Tipped At: 10/1
Current Best Price: 9/2

Supreme Novices' Hurdle Tips

The Supreme Novices’ Hurdle is a race where you can make cases for plenty of the runners in the field, and you wouldn’t be overly surprised regardless of who comes out on top.

I think one horse that needs to be highly considered though is Talk The Talk (Best price 5/1) who brings legitimate Grade 1 form into the race, and his strong finish could be a seriously good tool to have at Cheltenham, because not only does he have speed, but he also has stamina too.

The only thing with him is you wouldn’t want to be too far back turning for home here despite that speed, so he will need to get a good ride from JJ who has almost got it wrong twice now. He is a very solid each-way bet here though.

I also think it’s worth backing Old Park Star (Best price 11/4) for two points and I am of the opinion the race is between this pair. Old Park Star has done nothing but take steps forward this season and he is now three from three over hurdles.

The fact he not only has experience, but has Cheltenham form too is a major positive and he is a very straightforward horse. The way he wings the final flight and lands running has been very impressive to date, and if you back this pair to the advised stakes, I would like the think we come out in the profit here.

OLD PARK STAR 2pt win at 11/4
TALK THE TALK 1pt each-way at 5/1

Arkle Chase Tip

The Arkle is a bit more open than what meets the eye and it should be a belter of a race.

I have chopped and changed with my views on the race over the past few months, but now that it is crunch time, Kopek Des Bordes (Best price 6/4) is the one I have landed on.

Kargese is a class mare, but she probably doesn’t have the raw ability that Kopek Des Bordes has, and Lulamba another class animal, probably doesn’t have Kopek's speed. Now you do have to take it on trust that he can come here and win first time out, however the vibes have been very strong and you need to take note of that.

His ability over two miles last season was top of the pile, and if he comes out and gets into a good rhythm, he could be the one to beat here. He must overcome the lack of experience though.

KOPEK DES BORDES 1.5pt win at 6/4

Plate Handicap Chase Tips

The Plate Handicap Chase is always a difficult race to get to the bottom of, but I have two fancies in the line-up.

McLaurey (best price 4/1) has been on my radar for quite some time and he looks like a horse that may have been laid out for this race. He won the big handicap hurdle at the Dublin Racing Festival last season, beating Storm Heart, who I also like for the Coral Cup, and despite being towards the head of the market, McLaurey could still be very competitive off a mark of just 133.

I also think No Questions Asked (best price 14/1) needs to be taken very seriously as the each-way angle here despite his big weight. He already has some strong form in the book and could easily have gone for the Jack Richards Novices' Handicap Chase, he’s that sort of class of horse. The way the Plate is likely to be run should suit him well, and at a double figure price he looks well worth considering too.

MCLAUREY 1.5pt win at 4/1
NO QUESTIONS ASKED 1pt each-way at 12/1 (5 Places)