Cheltenham favourites

Both bookmakers and punters look forward to Cheltenham favourites each year because the festival is a huge betting opportunity that always attracts millions of pounds of bets placed.

Cheltenham favourites – Top 10

Cheltenham favourites are often based on the good form they bring, the best jockeys and trainers, recent trial races and having good winning past form at the Cheltenham Festival.

Cheltenham Gold Cup 2023 ante-post odds and potential runners

1. Galopin Des Champs 7/2
2. A Plus Tard 4/1
3. Ahoy Senor 10/1
4. L’Homme Presse 14/1
5. Monkfish 16/1
6. Stattler 20/1
7. Allaho 20/1
8. Capodanno 25/1
9. Minella Indo 25/1
10. Galvin 25/1

*Odds subject to change and correct on 27th April 2022. 

Cheltenham Festival favourites – Grade 1

Find the Cheltenham Favourites for the biggest races of the Cheltenham Festival 2023.

Cheltenham favourites 2022

Day	Race	Favourite	Odds	Bookmakers
1	Supreme Novices	Facile Vega	3/1	Bet with
1	Champion Hurdle	Constitution Hill	2/1	Bet with
2	Champion Chase	Energumene	11/4	Bet with
2	Cross Country	Delta Work	5/2	Bet with
3	Ryanair Chase	Allaho	9/4	Bet with
3	Stayers’ Hurdle	Flooring Porter	6/1	Bet with
4	Gold Cup	Galopin Des Champs	7/2	Bet with

*Odds subject to change and correct on 27th April 2022.

Cheltenham betting tips 2023 and Festival betting guide

Here are the main Cheltenham Tips when it comes to the types of bets you can place:

• Win bets on the Cheltenham favourites races such as the Champion Hurdle, Champion Chase, Stayers’ Hurdle, Ryanair Chase and the Cheltenham Gold Cup.
• Each way bets on the Cheltenham favourites races such as the Triumph Hurdle, bumper, cross country race and handicaps.
• The number of races won by a horse trained in Britain and Ireland and which nation has the most winners.
• The leading jockey at the festival.
• The leading trainer at the festival.

Many horses are returning for another crack at the Cheltenham Festival in 2023, and we often see previous winners heading up the ante post market. One of the Gold Cup favourites, A Plus Tard, was last year’s winner. Meanwhile L’Homme Presse and Ahoy Senor, the top two from the 2022 Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase, now both feature prominently as favourites for 2023 Cheltenham Gold Cup.

2022 Cheltenham Gold Cup results

Top Cheltenham Races

There are several feature races held over the four day Cheltenham Festival.

Day 1 – Champion Hurdle

The championship race on day one of the 2023 Cheltenham Festival is the two-mile Champion Hurdle. Won last time by leading mare Honeysuckle and ridden by star jockey Rachael Blackmore, there is every reason to think that she will be back for more on March 14th. It’s Supreme Novices winner Constitution Hill that finds himself as the Cheltenham Champion Hurdle ante-post favourite though.

Based on the average ante post odds, our table below gives you an idea of the perceived percentage chance the current top five have of winning the 2023 Champion Hurdle.

Implied probability based on best odds in April 2022.

Day 2 – Champion Chase

The Champion Chase, a top Grade 1 contest, features the best two-mile chasers in the business. Staged on Cheltenham’s Old Course, this race really is a speed test and was won in 2022 by Energumene, after pre-race favourite Shishkin failed to finish.

It’s those two horses who are expected to renew acquaintances as 2023 Champion Chase favourites.

Day 2 – Cross Country Chase

A unique race, the Cross Country takes place over numerous, very disparate fences. The 2022 Cross Country Chase was meant to be all about Tiger Roll retiring from racing in a blaze of glory, but it was stablemate Delta Work who came out on top. According to the ante post Cross Country Chase odds for 2023, he’s expected to battle it out with Easysland and Prengarde, even though both were pulled up in 2022.

Day 3 – Ryanair Chase

Day three’s most valuable race, if not the feature event, is the 2½-mile Grade 1 Ryanair Chase. Otherwise known as the Festival Trophy, this event has raised its profile gradually over the years to become one of the most important races on the National Hunt calendar.

Having won the race in spectacular style for Willie Mullins in both 2021 and 2022, Cheveley Park’s Allaho is once again listed as Ryanair Chase favourite for the upcoming renewal in 2023.

Day 3 – Stayers’ Hurdle

Thursday’s championship event is the Stayers’ Hurdle, a three-mile slog around the New Course. Klassical Dream was favoured last time around but was beaten in the end by Gavin Cromwell’s Flooring Porter. The 2021 and 2022 winner is the 2023 Cheltenham Stayers’ Hurdle favourite to defend his crown again.

Day 4 – Gold Cup

This is the big one. The Cheltenham Gold Cup staged on the final day of the meeting, is the sport’s ‘Blue Riband’ event. Run over 3¼ miles of the New Course, the Gold Cup really takes some getting with only the very best able to conquer it down the years.

Capping the week for trainer Henry De Bromhead, his A Plus Tard won the 2022 race and he is once again high on the list of suspects for 2023, although 2021 Martin Pipe Conditional winner Galopin Des Champs heads the Cheltenham Gold Cup ante post market.

Cheltenham Favourites – Ante-Post betting guide

One of the Cheltenham’s perks is ante-post betting on the major championship races – this is when you can bet on the Cheltenham Festival races way in advance of the meeting.

Most years as soon as the Festival is over there is betting on the races for the next Cheltenham Festival. Bookmakers such as Paddy Power and Betfair issue ante-post betting for races like the festival’s Gold Cup, Champion Hurdle and Champion Chase.

While nearer the time – around 6 months before – most of the Cheltenham Festival races will have betting on and these markets change all the time based on how horses are performing in the build-up to the Cheltenham Festival.

Non-Runner, No Bet

In the weeks before the Cheltenham Festival most of the main bookmakers like Paddy Power, William Hill, Coral and Bet365 will make their ante-post Cheltenham markets ‘Non-Runner, No Bet’ – this means that if your Cheltenham bet (horse) doesn’t run you will get your money back – it will be classed as a non-runner.

However, ante-post betting can be fraught with danger because if the backed horse is withdrawn before the day of the race all stakes are lost. In the weeks leading up to the Festival, some bookmakers offer the concession of non-runner/no bet.

This means if a horse is taken out of the race before race day it counts as a non-runner. Bookmakers refund all the placed stakes on the horse. In placing ante-post bets on Cheltenham favourites you should identify which bookmaker offers non-runner/no bet for all 28 races at the festival.

Initially, the offer might only apply to the feature race on each of the four days of the festival but nearer the time will be extended to cover all the races. Operators like Paddy Power and Betfair will offer extra places and odds boosts on winners at Cheltenham.

Read on to learn about the different races that you can bet on during this festival.

Cheltenham favourites best odds summary

The best bookmakers for the best odds for winners at the festival are Unibet and Betfair who both offer more value than Paddy Power. The place terms for each operator are the same when betting each way on Cheltenham favourites. All the major UK bookmakers offer odds in the ante-post betting for all 28 races at the festival.

Cheltenham Festival: Horse Racing – Cheltenham Festival – Cheltenham Racecourse, Cheltenham, Britain – March 12, 2019 Jeremiah McGrath on Beware The Bear celebrates winning the 2:50 Ultima Handicap Chase REUTERS/Eddie Keogh/Ritzau Scanpix

Live Cheltenham betting

Paddy Power, bet365 and Unibet are three of the biggest UK bookmakers and each operator offers live betting on Cheltenham favourites. Customers can bet on the winner of a race at the festival once the race has begun. Prices are updated as the race develops and betting is available until the outcome is obvious.

Some operators offer place only betting and others will accept each-way betting for live races which are often Cheltenham favourites.

Live streaming is available with several UK online bookmakers, but customers must place a bet to gain access to this service. There is also a cash-out option with Cheltenham favourites which means customers cash close bets before expiry to guarantee a profit or limit a loss.

Cheltenham betting offers

Most bookmakers will have extra Cheltenham Festival offers in the weeks leading up to the event – these can include faller insurance and extra place offers so it’s always best to shop around and find the best Cheltenham offers.

At the time of writing, no bookmakers offered odds boosts or extra places for Cheltenham favourites. However, new customers with Paddy Power and Unibet can take advantage of the welcome offer as longs as the qualifying bets and rules are compliant.

The welcome offers are generally matched deposit and bet bonuses. Any bonus funds can be used for betting on winners at Cheltenham. Each welcome offer is available when the Terms & Conditions are followed completely.

Check out the Cheltenham Betting Offers here.

Cheltenham favourites summary

The festival is huge for betting and all the major bookmakers offer ante-post betting for the winners at Cheltenham. Customers can place win and each-way bets on races at the festival and some bookmakers offer enhanced odds.

Non-runner/no bet is a popular concession during the few weeks before Cheltenham. It is easily the biggest betting meeting of the year with opportunities to enjoy welcome offers and place bets on Cheltenham favourites.

*All odds subject to change.

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