Cheltenham Champion Chase Betting Offers
The Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase, also simply known as the Champion Chase, is day two’s feature race at the Cheltenham Festival. So bounce back from any day one disappointments, or build on your successes, with the runners and betting odds, key trends to be aware of and the best Champion Chase betting offers and free bets.
Cheltenham Champion Chase betting offers and free bets
Bookmakers have run offers on the Champion Chase in previous years, with Betway certainly one to keep an eye out for given they are the race sponsors. We’ll be highlighting any race specific offers here too, as well as the Cheltenham sign up offers currently available to new customers.
| Bookmaker | Availability | Offer | Terms and Conditions |
|---|---|---|---|
| TBC | TBC | TBC | TBC |
Champion Chase – What you need to know
The Champion Chase is the feature race on day two of the Cheltenham Festival, and is considered to be the most prestigious middle distance race on the National Hunt calendar.
How long is the Champion Chase, when’s it held and where’s it run?
The Champion Chase is run at 3.30pm on the second day of the Cheltenham Festival, over a distance of two miles. This is less than half the length of the Grand National, so it is very rare to see the best horses go on to take part in the Aintree slogathon. More typically, Champion Chase horses go on to take part in either the Melling Chase, which is the feature race on Ladies Day, or in the Maghull Novices’ Chase, which is run at 3pm on Grand National day itself.
Champion Chase confirmed runners
Ante-post Champion Chase betting odds have available as soon as the previous year’s race has been run, as punters jostle to find early value before Cheltenham Festival entries are finalised. As things stand, the 2023 Champion Chase runners will be as follows:
- Captain Guinness
- Editeur du Gite
- Edwardstone
- Energumene
- Funambule Sivola
- Greaneteen
- Nube Negra
Cheltenham Champion Chase favourites and tips
The runners are listed below alongside their biggest achievements to date, previous Champion Chase form and current Cheltenham Champion Chase betting odds.
| 2023 Champion Chase Runners | Most notable results | Odds* |
|---|---|---|
| Energumene | 2022 Champion Chase winner, 2022 Punchestown Champion Chase winner | 6/4 |
| Edwardstone | 2022 Arkle winner, 2022 Tingle Creek winner | 13/8 |
| Editeur Du Gite | 2022 Desert Orchid Chase winner, 2023 Clarence House Chase winner | 6/1 |
| Captain Guinness | 2022 Paddy’s Rewards Club Chase runner-up | 20/1 |
| Nube Negra | 2021 Champion Chase runner-up | 22/1 |
| Greaneteen | 2021 Tingle Creek winner, 2022 Celebration Chase winner | 28/1 |
| Funambule Sivola | 2022 Champion Chase runner-up | 50/1 |
*All Cheltenham Champion Chase odds last updated on 15th March and subject to change.
Picking the most likely winner of the 2023 Champion Chase isn’t an easy task given the most fancied runners have all won significant races against each other in recent months. Take a look at the leading Champion Chase runners below.
Energumene
Energumene may have won last year’s Champion Chase by 8½ lengths, but he didn’t go odds-on to make it two Cheltenham Festival victories in a row until December, when impressing over in Cork in the Hilly Way Chase. The Clarence House Chase at January’s Cheltenham Trials was expected to solidify Energumene’s spot as favourite, but he was comprehensively beaten into third place by both Editeur Du Gite and Edwardstone. Whether that defeat proves to be a one off or a sign of things to come in March remains to be seen.
Edwardstone
Like Energumene, Edwardstone also won at Cheltenham 12 months ago, but the Arkle winner really turned heads as potential Champion Chase winner when convincingly beating the likes of Greaneteen, Shishkin and Gentleman de Mee in the Tingle Creek at Sandown. He has since been beaten by Editeur du Gite on two occasions though, unseating jockey Tom Cannon in the Desert Orchid Chase before being pipped to the post in the Clarence House Chase.
Editeur du Gite
Editeur du Gite experienced a less successful Cheltenham Festival than his main rivals last year, coming home fourth in the Grand Annual. His last two runs have catapulted him into contention for day two’s feature race though. First, Editeur du Gite took full advantage of Edwardstone unseating his rider in the Desert Orchid Chase to win at odds of 28/1. He then proved it was no flash in the pan by coming out on top in January’s Clarence House Chase, ahead of not just Edwardstone but also Energumene. Editeur du Gite’s results are certainly trending in the right direction heading to the Cheltenham Champion Chase 2023.
Cheltenham Champion Chase past winners
Although a number of horses have managed to win the Champion Chase on more than one occasion, actually accomplishing the feat is still seen as the sign of a truly great two-miler. Altior, Sprinter Sacre and Master Minded are the horses that have won the Champion Chase twice most recently, while Badsworth Boy remains the only three-time Champion Chase winner. Energumene will attempt to write his name into the record books for a second time.
- 2022 – Energumene (5/2)
- 2021 – Put The Kettle On (17/2)
- 2020 – Politologue (6/1)
- 2019 – Altior (4/11 fav)
- 2018 – Altior (Evens fav)
- 2017 – Special Tiara (11/1)
- 2016 – Sprinter Sacre (5/1)
- 2015 – Dodging Bullets (9/2)
- 2014 – Sire Du Grugy (11/4 fav)
- 2013 – Sprinter Sacre (1/4 fav)
Cheltenham Champion Chase betting trends
Studying the trends relating to past Champion Chase winners is one popular way of trying to find an edge in the race. We’ve dug back through the archives to find out whether there are any similarities between the horses who were first past the post since 2013.
Key Cheltenham Champion Hurdle betting trends
- 10/10 – Winner had already won at least 6 races
- 9/10 – Winner had raced at Cheltenham before
- 9/10 – Winner was priced at single-figure odds (9/1 or less)
- 7/10 – Winner was priced at 5/1 or less
- 6/10 – Winner had won their most recent race
- 6/10 – Winner had won at the Cheltenham Festival before
- 4/10 – Winner had run in the Champion Chase before
- 4/10 – Race was won by the favourite
- 4/10 – Nicky Henderson trained the winner
- 3/10 – Nico de Boinville rode the winner
- 3/10 – Winner was aged 7 years old or less
- 2/10 – Winner was aged 10 years old or older
- 2/10 – Winner had won the Champion Chase before
Evidently, it’s rare to find a Champion Chase winner at really big odds, as you might in the Grand National, although the record of favourites is pretty hit-and-miss. Surprisingly few Champion Chase winners in recent times came into the race off the back of a win, although all had won at least six races already.
How to watch and stream the Cheltenham Champion Chase
Once you’ve placed your Champion Chase bets, you’ll no doubt want to watch the race play out. As the Champion Chase is one of the Cheltenham Festival’s feature races, it’ll be screened on ITV.
However not all races from the Festival can be viewed on free-to-air TV, so it can be worthwhile finding a suitable bookmaker as the majority will stream the whole event on their sites. In many cases, it isn’t even essential to have placed a bet in advance of the Festival, although there’s generally a requirement to have deposited into your account previously.
Cheltenham Champion Chase FAQs
What date is the Cheltenham Champion Chase 2023?
The Cheltenham Festival will run from the 14th to the 17th of March this year. The Champion Chase will be the feature race on day two, and so is scheduled for Wednesday 15th March.
Who won the Champion Chase 2022?
Energumene was the Champion Chase winner in 2022, finishing eight and a half lengths clear of Funambule Sivola in second. Both horses are set to line-up for the Champion Chase again in 2023.
What time is the Champion Chase at Cheltenham?
The Champion Hurdle is scheduled to start at 3.30pm on Wednesday 15 March 2023.
What distance is the Champion Chase?
The Champion Chase is run over a distance of two miles. It takes place on Cheltenham’s old course and there are a total of 12 fences to be jumped.
Has any horse won the Champion Chase three times?
Although a number of horses have won the Champion Chase twice, Badsworth Boy remains the only three time Champion Chase winner.
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