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Key events
We’re 30 minutes away from the day’s opening race. Here are the latest odds:
1.20 Turners Novices’ Hurdle
No Drama This End – 5/2
Sober – 7/1
King Rasko Grey – 9/1
Act Of Innocence – 9/1
Sortudo – 9/1
Skylight Hustle – 10/1
Ballyfad – 11/1
Ill Sort That – 14/1
Bossman Jack – 14/1
Shuttle Diplomacy – 28/1
28/1 bar
Greg Wood
4.40 Grand Annual Challenge Cup Handicap Chase
As ever, there is a big field of specialist two-milers for this annual, high-octane charge over the minimum trip, including last year’s winner, Jazzy Matty, who has spent most of the intervening time running over hurdles, presumably to protect his handicap mark. He has had a wind-op too since running sixth over timber at Thurles in January, but this is a race where novices have dominated in recent seasons and he could struggle to see off some of his more unexposed rivals this time around from an 8lb higher mark. Dan Skelton’s Be Aware very much fits the profile of a typical recent Grand Annual winner after just four starts over fences, and his trainer has already added to his impressive record in handicaps at this meeting with Madara’s victory here yesterday. Inthepocket is a second-season chaser rather than a novice but is attracting support to give JP McManus’s a fifth winner of this race, while Ben Pauling’s Vanderpoel could be the pick of the prices at around 8-1. He travelled and jumped notably well for a novice on the way to victory at Sandown last time and looks tailor-made for this step up in class.
Selection: Vanderpoel.
5.20 Champion Bumper, National Hunt Flat
The last of the four Grade Ones on the card has been won by an Irish-trained runner every year since 2016, and by a Willie Mullins-trained runner no fewer than 14 times. As a result, many punters will look no further than Love Sign D’Aunou, the mount of his son, Patrick, and an impressive winner at Naas in January. Plenty of Mullins-trained winners have been second-, third- or even fourth-strings in the betting, however, including the Ruby-Walsh ridden Briar Hill who went in at the astonishing price of 25-1 back in 2013, so the likes of Quiryn (Paul Townend), The Irish Avatar (Harry Cobden) and Our Trigger (Danny Mullins) are worth considering too, while the fact that Gordon Elliott’s Keep Him Company is challenging Love Sign D’Aunou for favouritism could also prove significant. And though the recent stats are hardly promising, the British challenge looks a little stronger this year, with Chris Gordon’s Bass Hunter and Dan Skelton’s recent French import Mets Ta Ceinture both trading at around 14-1. At a (very) big price each-way, meanwhile, Adrian Keatley’s Diamant Dore, with Brian Hughes booked to ride, could give punters a run for their money at around 50-1. He bolted up by 17 lengths on his only start to date at Ayr, posting a useful time in the process, and has a first-time hood to keep him settled.
Selection: Diamant Dore.
Read all of Greg’s day two tips here:
Greg Wood
4.00 Queen Mother Champion Chase
The two-mile chasing championship promised to be a compelling head-to-head between Majborough and Marine Nationale before last year’s winner suffered a late injury, but it may now prove to be a case of Majborough versus the fences, given his somewhat error-prone record prior to his impressive success at the Dublin Racing Festival. A repeat of that form would surely be enough, but he made a hash of the second-last when odds-on for the Arkle here last year and the bookies laying him at around 10-11 will harbour high hopes of getting him beaten.
Stable companion Il Etait Temps, the mount of Paul Townend, has emerged as the clear second-favourite this morning, which suggests he has been showing up well at home following his disappointing run in the Clarence House at Ascot, while Dan Skelton’s L’Eau Du Sud, who goes well fresh and saves his best for this track and trip, is next in the list at 11-2. The novice Irish Panther is another interesting runner in a race where plenty will fancy their chances should the favourite disappoint, while Quilixios, the 2021 Triumph Hurdle winner, was booked for a commendable second place when he came down at the last 12 months ago.
Key form:
G1 Dublin Chase, Leopardstown, 1 Feb 26 (Majborough)
G1 Racing Post Novice Chase, Leopardstown, 26 Dec 25 (Irish Panther).
G1 Clarence House Chase, Ascot, 17 Jan 26, 2m 172f (Il Etait Temps)
G2 Shloer Chase, Cheltenham, 14 Nov 25, 1m 7f 199yd (L’Eau Du Sud).
G1 Celebration Chase, Sandown, 26 Apr 25, 1m 7f 99yd (Il Etait Temps)
Timeform Top-Rated: Majborough.
Selection: L’Eau Du Sud
Two more Wednesday previews, courtesy of Greg Wood:
2.40 BetMGM Cup Handicap Hurdle
The race that had been the Coral Cup since 1993 has a new name this year, thanks to the previous sponsor’s decision to drop its support citing recent rises in betting taxes as the main reason. It does not seem to be an issue that concerns the new sponsor, though, which has added the race to its support of the feature event, and it has certainly not affected the depth or competitiveness of a race that is always one of the most tempting carrots dangling before punters all week. It would be quicker to list the horses that can’t win today rather than the ones that can, but the one for money so far today has been Nicky Henderson’s Jingko Blue, as the trainer bids to build on his double on the opening-day card. He’s down to 7-1 second-favourite (from 10-1 this morning) behind Willie Mullins’s Storm Heart, the mount of stable super-sub Danny Mullins. Gordon Elliott’s The Yellow Clay has been nibbled at in the betting too, while Nicky Henderson has a useful second-string to his bow in Iberico Lord, the mount of Nico de Boinville. I’ll be having a bit each-way on Henry de Bromhead’s Forty Coats, meanwhile, as he returns to the scene of his useful effort to finish fourth in the Turners Novice Hurdle here 12 months ago.
Selection: Forty Coats.
3.20 Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase Handicap
Love it or hate it, the Cross Country Chase has now reached its 21st birthday and the reversion to its original handicap format 12 months ago also looks like a smart move with five runners in this year’s race currently on offer at single-figure odds. Favori De Champdou has been the likely favourite since romping to victory from a mark of 149 on Trials Day in January, and an 8lb rise for that easy success over track and trip is more than fair. The veteran Vanillier, the runner-up behind Corach Rambler in the 2023 Grand National, is another previous course winner with a decent racing weight while the 2025 winner, Stumptown, is up 5lb for his success 12 months ago and will be very tough to keep out of the frame. The last horse in the handicap proper, meanwhile, is Martin Brassil’s Desertmore House, the winner of the Risk Of Thunder Chase over Punchestown’s cross-country course in November, and if you put a line through his effort over hurdles at Leopardstown last time, he has a very live chance off a mark of 140.
Selection: Desertmore House.
Greg Wood
2.00 Brown Advisory Novice Chase preview
The form of Romeo Coolio’s win in the Irish Arkle looks a lot stronger following the success of Kargese, the runner-up, in the Arkle here on Tuesday. Gordon Elliott’s seven-year-old is currently edging Final Demand, one of five runners in the race from the Willie Mullins stable, in the betting. The big step up in trip is the obvious question mark over Romeo Coolio’s chance, and Elliott has acknowledged that if the Turners Novice Chase, over 2.5 miles, had still been in the schedule, it would have been the obvious race for him. The trainer is using a first-time hood on the favourite to help him settle, but it remains a worry for trainer and punters alike.
Final Demand, meanwhile, was only third behind his stable-companion, Kaid D’Authie, in a Grade One at Leopardstown last time, but narrowly favoured in the betting to reverse the form. Western Fold, who split the Mullins pair at Leopardstown, is also a live contender, alongside the lightly-raced improver Koktail Divin, from the Henry de Bromhead stable, unraced since winning a beginners’ event at Leopardstown’s Christmas meeting. Jamie Snowden’s Wendigo is the shortest-priced runner from a British stable, and he was not too far behind Mullins’s Kitzbuhel – re-opposing today with Harry Cobden in the saddle – in the Grade One Kauto Star Novice Chase at Kempton on Boxing Day.
G1 Ladbrokes Novice Chase, Leopardstown, 1 Feb 26 (Kaid D’Authie, Western Fold, Final Demand).
G1 Irish Arkle Novice Chase, Leopardstown, 2 Feb 26 (Romeo Coolio).
G1 Kauto Star Novice Chase, Kempton, 26 Dec 25, (Kitzbuhel, Wendigo)
G1 Racing Post Novice Chase, Leopardstown, 26 Dec 25 (Romeo Coolio).
Beginners’ Chase, Leopardstown, 28 Dec 25 (Koktail Divin).
Timeform Top-Rated: Romeo Coolio
Selection: Kaid D’Authie.
Cheltenham reaffirms safety commitment after fight footage appears online
Cheltenham Racecourse has reiterated its commitment to providing a “safe and enjoyable experience for all” after footage emerged on social media of a fight at the track on Tuesday.
A group of men were videoed pushing and shoving before punches started to be thrown, with one man in particular looking dazed after suffering from a very heavy blow. The disturbance was soon brought under control and it has been confirmed that no arrests were made.
A spokesperson for Cheltenham Racecourse said: “Our focus is always on providing safe and enjoyable experiences for all our racegoers and we operate a strict zero-tolerance policy towards any form of antisocial behaviour.
“There was an isolated incident yesterday involving a small number of racegoers which was dealt with quickly by our security team on site. Police based at the racecourse attended but no arrests were made. Millions of people enjoy a day at the races every year while behaving perfectly safely and responsibly.” PA Media
Greg Wood
1.20 Turners Novice hurdle, Grade one, 2m 5f preview
After the four British-trained runners filled the first four places in the Supreme on Tuesday, there is understandable interest in whether the home team can complete a double in the openers on Tuesday and Wednesday for the first time since 2012. It is a distinct possibility, as Paul Nicholls’s No Drama This End is a solid favourite at around 5-2 after his impressive win in the Challow Novice Hurdle at Newbury in December. Nicholls’s previous winners of that race include Bravemansgame, Stage Star and the mighty Denman, and while Denman came up just short in this race when favourite back in 2006, No Drama This End has an obvious chance to go one better.
The main opposition, according to the market at least, comes from the Willie Mullins stable: Sober, the mount of the trainer’s son, Patrick, and King Rasko Grey, the mount of stable jockey Paul Townend. Sober has plenty of high-class Flat form, including a Group Two success in France and a win in the Queen Alexandra Stakes at Royal Ascot last summer, and remains unbeaten after two starts over hurdles. Danny Mullins, the trainer’s nephew and perennial No 2 or No 3 rider, now has 32 career Grade One wins after his success in Tuesday’s Arkle, none of which were favourites, and attempts to make it 33 on Sortudo. Act Of Innocence represents the same owner/trainer/jockey combo as Old Park Star, Tuesday’s Supreme winner, while Ballyfad is Jack Kennedy’s pick from a couple of live runners for Gordon Elliott.
Key form and selection:
G1 Challow Novice Hurdle, Newbury, 29 Dec 25 (No Drama This End)
G1 Ballymore Novice Hurdle, Naas, 9 Jan 26 (I’ll Sort That, Sortudo).
G2 Moscow Flyer Novice Hurdle, Punchestown, 11 Jan 26 (Sober).
G1 Tattersalls Ireland Novice Hurdle, Leopardstown, 1 Feb 26, (Ballyfad, King Rasko Grey)
Timeform Top-Rated: No Drama This End.
Selection: No Drama This End.
Wednesday’s race card
1.20 Turners Novices’ Hurdle
2.00 Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase
2.40 Coral Cup Hurdle
3.20 Cross Country Steeple Chase
4.00 Queen Mother Steeple Chase
4.40 Grand Annual Steeple Chase Challenge Cup
5.20 Champion Bumper
Here are the day two market movers and most popular bets:
Market movers:
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Jingko Blue – 5/1 from 10/1
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Pied Piper – 10/1 from 22/1
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Bossman Jack – 9/1 out to 16/1
Most popular bets:
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Majborough – 46% of Champion Chase bets
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No Drama This End – 28% of Turners bets
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Romeo Coolio – 24% of Brown Advisory bets
All odds via Oddschecker.
Sean Ingle reports on day one, with plenty of positives to report after a buildup marked by in-fighting and concerns for racing’s future.
Preamble
Greg Wood
Good morning from Cheltenham racecourse on day two of the 2026 festival meeting: Champion Chase day, and also now Ladies’ Day, as the track attempts to address the most obvious hole in the crowd figures after three straight years of declining attendance.
Last year’s Wednesday attendance dipped below 42,000 for the first time, and also below the (record) figure for the New Year’s Day fixture here two months ago. It might seem a little cursory to slap a “Ladies’ Day” tag on the card and expect a significant boost to the crowd, but hey, it’s worked like a charm for racecourses the length and breadth of the country over the last 20 years, so why not give it a try?
It should not, after all, be a difficult sell. The Champion Chase is one of four Grade One races on the card – the other three days have only three – and while the feature race is typically low on numbers, and sadly missing a defending champion too after Marine Nationale was ruled out last week, the quixotic Majborough is an intriguing favourite, likely to divide punters fairly evenly over whether he should be backed or opposed.
The going at Cheltenham is slightly quicker today, having shifted from good-to-soft to good-to-soft (good in places), and the action is underway at 1.20pm with the Turners Novice Hurdle, where Paul Nicholls’s No Drama This End will set off as favourite and attempt to complete an opening-race double for British yards after their 1-2-3-4 in the Supreme Novice Hurdle on Tuesday.
There is a maximum field for the 3m 1f Broadway Novice Chase at 2.00, vindicating the decision to axe the Turners Novice Chase over two-and-a-half miles. You can follow all the action, as always, here on the blog throughout the afternoon.
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