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 keep on top of, and all the best Champion Chase betting offers and free bets.
Cheltenham Champion Chase betting offers and free bets
Bookmakers have run race-specific Champion Chase betting offers in previous years, and it’s more of the same this year. We’ll be highlighting any race specific offers here too, as well as the Cheltenham sign up offers currently available to new customers.
| Best Champion Chase betting sites | Champion Chase offers | Eligibility |
|---|---|---|
| 🎁 Paddy Power Champion Chase offer | El Fabiolo 50/1 to win the Champion Chase* | New customers |
| 🎁 William Hill Champion Chase offer | El Fabiolo 20/1 to win the Champion Chase** | New customers |
| 🎁 Paddy Power Champion Chase offer | Free bet on any race Wednesday*** | Existing customers |
| 🎁 William Hill Champion Chase offer | £5 daily free bet**** | Existing customers |
| 🎁 Betfair Cheltenham offer | Free multiples bet***** | Existing customers |
*New customer offer. Max stake £/€1. Winnings paid in cash at normal odds and are topped up to the enhanced price in Free Bets. Free bets are valid 7 days, only deposits with cards are eligible. Excludes multiples & in-play bets. T&C’s apply. Please gamble responsibly.
**New customer offer. Max stake £/€1. You will receive winnings at the standard odds in cash & receive your enhanced winnings in free bets, paid within 48 hours of the event ending. Your account will be credited with 2 x £10 free bets (total value of £20), paid within 48 hours of the event ending. T&Cs apply
***Max free bet varies per customer. Free bet can be used on any race Wednesday. Free bet stake is not included in subsequent winnings. Claim your free bet via promo page after 17:00pm Tuesday 12th March to then use it in their bet slip when placing a bet.
****Opt in required. Valid from 7am 26th Feb to 5.45pm on 15th March. Max 1x£5 free bet per customer, per day on any Cheltenham races. Free bet expires 5.45pm each day, redemption events apply. Online and in-shop. Player restrictions, free bets capping limits and T&Cs apply.
*****Opt in required. Max 1 free bet per customer per day, varies £1 – £10. Free bet valid for the day it is claimed only on racing multiples between 12.03.24 and 15.03.24. Min odds of 1.5 on min 1 leg. Returns excludes stakes. Must have previously deposited. Exclusions & T&Cs apply.
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 the centrepiece of Cheltenham Festival day two, and is run 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.
The race is normally scheduled for 3.30pm but it has been delayed until 4pm this year, after some late scheduling changes following the abandonment of the Cross Country Chase.
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 2024 Champion Chase runners will be as follows:
- El Fabiolo
- Edwardstone
- Captain Guinness
- Elixir De Nutz
- Gentleman de Mee
- Boothill
- Funambule Sivola
You should take note of bookies who are offering Non Runner No Bet Insurance if you want to place a bet on this race. Existing customer offers are available ahead of Cheltenham.
Cheltenham Champion Chase favourites and tips
The main Champion Chase runners are listed below alongside their biggest achievements to date, and current Cheltenham Champion Chase betting odds.
| 2024 Champion Chase Runners | Most notable win | Odds* |
|---|---|---|
| El Fabiolo | 2023 Arkle | 1/3 |
| Edwardstone | 2022 Arkle | 13/2 |
| Captain Guinness | 2023 Fortria Chase | 15/2 |
| Elixir De Nutz | 2024 Clarence House Chase | 25/1 |
| Gentleman de Mee | 2023 Dublin Chase | 33/1 |
| Boothill | 2023 Handicap Chase | 66/1 |
| Funambule Sivola | 2023 Handicap Chase | 100/1 |
*All Cheltenham Champion Chase odds last updated on 13th March and subject to change.
El Fabiolo is currently the clear favourite for the race but there are definitely some rivals who should not be overlooked. Here is a little bit of information explaining why El Fabiolo is the favourite, as well as some other information on his current closest competitor.
El Fabiolo
El Fabiolo has been on fine form and the bay gelding horse has won his last 7 races, with one of these wins coming in the Arkle Challenge Trophy Novices’ Chase at Cheltenham in 2023. With last year’s Champion Chase winner Energumene out of the race in 2024, alongside the late withdrawal of Jonbon, El Fabiolo has a great chance to continue his fine form.
Edwardstone
Edwardstone definitely has an outside chance of winning the Champions Chase at Cheltenham this year. He won his last race at Newbury and has recorded 2 2nd placed finishes at Cheltenham in 2023. The horse raced in the Champion Chase last year, but it was a race to forget as he finished 5th.
Captain Guinness
At the start of 2023, Captain Guinness was on good form, finishing in the top two in 5 races from the end of 2022 to the end of 2023. Recently though his form hasn’t been great. The horse, ridden by jockey Rachel Blackmore, failed to finish his race in December 2023 and then finished 3rd in February 2024.
Elixir De Nutz
The 10 year old horse, trained by Joe Tizzard, won the Clarence House Chase race at Cheltenham in January 2024, beating Jonbon. With 3 wins in 4 races as well, Elixir De Nutz could definitely be a horse that causes a shock in the Champion Chase.
Gentleman de Mee
Gentleman de Mee hasn’t won a race since February 2023. This win came in the Dublin Chase. The 8 year old horse, trained by Willie Mullins, raced in the Dublin Chase again this year in February and finished 4th, so he is not in great form going into this race.
Boothill
Boothill managed two 1st place finishes at Ascot in November 2023 but then fell at Kempton and most recently fell at Newbury in February 2024. Due to this, Boothill is currently not seen as having a chance in the Champion Chase. Trainer Harry Fry will be hoping that the horse gets through the race unscathed.
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 recently, with Energumene added his name to that elite list in 2023. Sadly, injury has put paid to Energumene’s hopes of joining Badsworth Boy as a three-time Champion Chase victor.
- 2023 – Energumene (6/5 fav)
- 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
- 11/11 – Winner had already won at least 6 races
- 10/11 – Winner had raced at Cheltenham before
- 10/11 – Winner was priced at single-figure odds (9/1 or less)
- 8/11 – Winner was priced at 5/1 or less
- 7/11 – Winner had won at the Cheltenham Festival before
- 6/11 – Winner had won their most recent race
- 5/11 – Winner had run in the Champion Chase before
- 5/11 – Race was won by the favourite
- 4/11 – Nicky Henderson trained the winner
- 3/11 – Nico de Boinville rode the winner
- 3/11 – Winner had won the Champion Chase before
- 3/11 – Winner was aged 7 years old or less
- 2/11 – Winner was aged 10 years old or older
Evidently, it’s rare to find a Champion Chase winner at really big odds, as you might do 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 2024?
The Cheltenham Festival will run from the 12th to the 15th of March this year. The Champion Chase will be the feature race on day two, and so is scheduled for Wednesday 13th March.
Who won the Champion Chase 2023?
Energumene was the Champion Chase winner in 2023, finishing 10 lengths clear of Captain Guinness in second. Both horses are set to line-up for the Champion Chase again in 2024.
What time is the Champion Chase at Cheltenham?
The Champion Hurdle was scheduled to start at 3.30pm on Wednesday 13 March 2024, but it has been delayed until 4pm following the abandonment of the Cross Country Chase.
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.
Why is Energumene not running in the 2024 Champion Chase?
Sadly Energumene will not be able to race for the opportunity to win the Champion Chase for the third time in a row. This is because the horse has picked up an injury which has ruled him out of Cheltenham. The horse has a leg injury and will likely miss the season.
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