15:20 Wednesday

Day 2 of the Cheltenham Festival is named ‘Style Wednesday’ and punters will be hoping for a dominant performance from Jonbon in the Queen Mother Champion Chase, the highlight of Ladies’ Day run at 4pm. 

What to Expect on Day 2 of the Cheltenham Festival

How dominant Willie Mullins has been on the first day will likely influence how short both Final Demand (Turners Novices’ Hurdle) and Ballyburn (Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase) are in the market. 

The Coral Cup and Grand Annual both look competitive handicaps and it will be interesting to see how the shape of the Cross Country Chases with that race now reverting back to a handicap rather than a conditions race. 

The Champion Bumper, the race which provided Willie Mullins with his 100th festival winner last season, concludes the card in a race which has been dominated by Irish trained horses in recent years.  

Today’s Best Bets from Our Tipster

3:20 Cheltenham - Busselton 8/1 (0.5pt ew)

The likes of Stumptown and Galvin appear too high in the weights now that this race reverts back to a handicap and I expect to see a much better performance from BUSSELTON (best priced at 8/1) with blinkers back on. 

The Joseph O’Brien trained eight-year-old won the 2022 Kerry National off a mark of 142 in the past and has clearly been campaigned with this race solely in mind this season. He was given two runs around this course in November and December off higher marks when finishing 6th on both occasions. 

It is interesting that connections ran Busselton in the Boyne Hurdle last time as both Tiger Roll (2018 & 2019) and Delta Work (2023) both used that race as prep before winning this race on their next start. 

Busselton won the Kerry National when blinkers were re-applied and also won a flat handicap at Galway when they were re-applied so the fact that he hasn’t worn headgear on his previous three starts is eye-catching. A mark of 138 looks lenient and he should hit the frame with up to six places available.

16:40 Wednesday

4:40 Cheltenham - Unexpected Party 6/1 (0.5pt ew)

The repeat victory of Langer Dan in the Coral Cup last season raised question marks around the leniency of the handicapper and I feel it may be the same case this year with UNEXPECTED PARTY (best priced at 6/1). 

An impressive 2 ¼ length winner of this contest last season off a mark of 138, he runs in it this year off a mark of 144 having been dropped 5lbs by the handicapper in his four runs this season. 

Unexpected Party has been ridden from the rear on his previous two starts whereas he was ridden very prominently in this race last year and I expect a change of tactics during this race with Harry Skelton back on board. The better ground is no concern and he is respected in his repeat bid. 

18:30 Wednesday

6:30 Wolverhampton - Paradoxical (Forecast 7/4 - 1pt) 

Away from the Cheltenham Festival, PARADOXICAL should prove hard to beat in his hat-trick bid at this course. 

Unbeaten in his two starts since the application of cheekpieces, he coped with a drop back in trip to win by 1¼ lengths under Warren Fentiman here last time. 

With this step back up in trip in his favour, Paradoxical should prove hard to beat off only a 4lb higher mark.

Key Races to Watch on Day 2 at Cheltenham

The Queen Mother Champion Chase (4:00) is the key race on the second day of the Cheltenham Festival. Paul Nicholls, Tom Dreaper and Nicky Henderson are all tied on six wins in the race and the latter will be hoping that Jonbon can record his first success at the festival. 

A runner-up in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle in 2022 and the Arkle Novices’ Chase in 2023, he was a leading contender for this race last season before Nicky Henderson withdrew a lot of his horses. He has won his previous five races and arrives here with an official rating of 171. 

Marine Nationale hasn’t won since his chasing debut in December 2023 but was a close 2nd behind Solness in the Dublin Chase last time and a success for him would be poignant following the passing of Michael O’Sullivan who rode him to win the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle in 2023.  

 

Key Cheltenham Stats & Trends for Day 2

Turners Novices’ Hurdle: 

  • 10 of the previous 11 winners were trained in Ireland
  • Seven of the previous 16 winners were trained by Willie Mullins
  • 28 of the previous 25 winners were aged six
  • All of the previous 15 winners had won at least 1 bumper
  • 13 of the previous 16 winners had already won a Graded novice hurdle
  • Seven of the previous 13 favourites won this race
  • Challow Novices’ Hurdle winners are 0-21 in the race 
  • Only two of the previous 13 winners were priced bigger than 9/2

 

Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase: 

  • 17 of the previous 18 winners had finished 1st or 2nd in a Grade 1 or Grade 2 novice chase
  • The last five winners ran over either 2m4f or 2m5f last time out
  • 24 of the previous 29 winners spent just one season over hurdles
  • 21 of the previous 24 winners had between three and five chase starts
  • 12 of the previous 21 winners were trained by Willie Mullins, Nicky Henderson or Paul Nicholls 
  • 12 of the previous 13 winners were sent off at 8/1 or shorter
  • Six of the previous 10 favourites have won
  • Six of the previous 15 winners had contested the Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle the year before

 

Champion Chase:

  • Nine of the previous 14 winners were trained by Nicky Henderson (five) or Henry De Bromhead (four)
  • 10 of the previous 13 winners were 6/1 or shorter but six odds-on favourites have been beaten the previous nine years
  • 14 of the previous 24 winners had won at the Festival previously
  • Seven of the previous 14 Arkle (last year) winners to have run have won
  • 18 of the previous 20 winners had run just two or three times that season
  • 30 of the previous 38 winners were aged 7-9
  • 14 of the previous 23 winners had won last time out
  • Eight of the previous 13 winners contested the Clarence House Chase
  • Six of the previous 11 winners contested the Shloer Chase

 

Champion Bumper: 

  • 25 of the previous 32 winners were trained in Ireland with Willie Mullins having trained 13 of those
  • The previous 21 winners had won last time out
  • 20 of the previous 28 winners were aged five
  • Eight of the previous 10 winners were 7/1 or shorter
  • Seven of the previous nine winners had run in February
  • Seven of the previous nine winners had won a listed or graded bumper
  • Six of the previous seven winners were unbeaten 

 

What’s Coming Up on Day 3 at the Cheltenham Festival

The highlight of the third day of the Cheltenham Festival is the Stayers’ Hurdle at 4:00 where last year’s winner Teahupoo bids to repeat his success.