Cheltenham Festival Betting Guide

The Cheltenham Festival for the year 2018 has 28 top-class races spread across four days. The World Hurdle, Cheltenham Gold Cup, Champion Hurdle and the Queen Mother Champion Chase are definitely the races that will attract the highest betting interest.

The Supreme Novices is the first competition at the festival and is a big part of the Cheltenham Festival. You should have a look at our Cheltenham Betting Tips as it can help you identify who might be in the running to win, and therefore net you some good odds, some good options to bet on, and most importantly, some good winnings.

General Cheltenham Racing Tips

The entire festival takes place over four days. Champions Day kicks off the action on 13th March, with the opening race, the Supreme Novices Hurdles. In the past, the winner of this race has been a great indicator of potential future Cheltenham winners, either in the Champion Hurdle or in the Arkle and other races over fences. Also on the first day is the Arkle Chase. Former Arkle winners, such as Sprinter Sacre, have gone on to win the Champion Chase.

The four main events of the week take place one a day, with the Champion Hurdle on the first day, the Champion Chase on day 2, the Stayers Hurdle on day 3, and the Gold Cup on the final day on Friday. There are also a number of handicap races across the four days and some interesting other races such as the Cross Country Chase and the Foxhunters Chase, which feature different challenges or specific rules that are slightly out of the ordinary, so it is worth doing some research on each race before betting.

Every race at the Cheltenham Festival has its own nuances, so it is definitely the kind of occasion where the more information you can get on each individual race, the better your chances of finding a winner.

2018 Cheltenham Betting Guide

It’s still early, and the targets for each horse will chop and change as we get closer to the Festival as form builds with many horses changing their distances, and others changing from hurdles to fences, or from novice company up to the very highest level.

• Altior impressed everyone on his way to winning the Arkle at a short price last year. He is expected to step up to face the mighty Douvan, who will be coming back for a second effort at the Championship race after a slight injury scuppered his chances last year. These two will be extremely hard to beat, and one of them seems very likely to take this crown.
• The Champion Hurdle has been blighted by injuries in recent years, and Faugheen will be a confident pick if he can recover from missing the last couple of years with injury himself. Elsewhere, last year’s Triumph winner, Defi Du Seuil, looks a very strong sprinter and is highly fancied to beat the calibre of horses that contested this race last year, including its previous winner, Buveur D’air.
• Fayonagh showed impressive speed to win the Champion Bumper last year, all despite being impeded terribly at a standing start. She looks a strong candidate to win the Mares Novices Hurdle, or indeed the Mares Hurdle or any other Novice hurdle, depending on where she is entered.
• Another who impressed last year was Might Bite when winning the RSA, despite having a bit of a wobble before coming up the hill to beat Whisper. He is highly fancied for the Gold Cup, but there are question marks over his temperament, even if his raw speed and ability are not up for debate.
• As well as the individual races, there are plenty of markets available looking at the top trainer and the top jockey at the Festival. Willie Mullins and Ruby Walsh have dominated these two fields in recent years, with their combination providing far more winners than any other. Many fans will be happy to simply back any horse that contains that combination, with plenty of profit made in the past from doing just that.

You should also do some research into Cheltenham stats and facts before placing your bets.

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