2010 CHELTENHAM FESTIVAL DAY ONE TIPS AND SELECTIONS

We’re now less than 24 hours away from the opening day of the Cheltenham Festival and Day One is shaping up to be a real cracker with plenty of exciting money-making opportunities available. We’ll be examining the first days best bets and give you a few clues about long-shot selections and some of the races where we’ll be keeping our reigns a little closer to our chest.

The 2010 Supreme Novices Hurdle is the first run of the day and I expect the Cheltenham Roar to be in full effect at the off. We’re treated to one of the festival’s main bankers in this race as Philip Fenton’s quality jumper Dunguib brings undefeated 2009/10 form into the race. Paddy Power is offering up a first-rate promo on this race by refunding all losing bets if Dunguib wins the race. You can’t beat that for value and I can see that shortening the prices on the highly-rated Get Me Out Of Here- Jonjo O’Neill’s undefeated 6 year-old. McCoy should be aboard for the trip and I think he’s well-priced for a win at 5/1. If you’re looking for a low-key spoiler- turn your attention to Willie Mullins Five year-old French gelding Flat Out- who is 32111 and looks to be a progressive. This is a big step up for him, but the opening day of the Cheltenham Festival has certainly produced bigger shocks in the past. You’ll find him at 20/1.
The 2010 Arkle Challenge Trophy has three first-rate contenders including Captain Cee Bee, Somersby and the main spoiler Sizing Europe. If Cee Bee gets the right trip, he could really be tough to tackle and his 11/4 price tag still offers a fair amount of return. I think this race will likely be battled down to the last furlong and there likely won’t be a big winning margin. I think playing a forecast with the top 3 contenders could pay dividends as there is not much between them. Sizing Europe gets my vote over Somersby, but I like Captain Cee Bee for this one because he’s shown form against a large field. Winning a race against 5 or 6 jumpers is a lot different than winning against 19 and that’s the type of form I like seeing on the way in. The up-and-comer is the lightly-raced Kangaroo Court who has taken two on the bounce so far in a lightly-raced season. He’s 25/1 with most major bookmakers.
We’ve got a bumper field set to go for the 2010 William Hill Challenge Trophy with no discernable favourite, but clear indications that punters are leaning towards Bensalem and The Package. Character Building is a solid contender and I also rate Razor Royale and Kicks For Free- a nine year-old out of Paul Nicholls yard. He’s run second to some talented jumpers and could turn out to be a decent each-way selection- I do like his 20/1 price tag in an open field. Character Building won the Kim Muir last year and that’s a great reference. I like backing a horse that knows how to win on the tough ground at Cheltenham and his 12/1 price still brings plenty of value to the table. Speaking of Cheltenham victories, The Package took a listed race there against 12 his last time out back in mid-December. That’s quite a lay-off though and he will need to come back sharply to take the win here. Alan King’s Bensalem is a there-or-thereabouts type, but I don’t see enough form to convince me that his 5/1 price is justified.
The 2010 Champion Hurdle looks the race of the day to me, with easily six or seven genuine contenders with the ability to win this race. This is a key moment in the career of a jumps horse, as it tends to separate the men from the boys if you get my meaning. Go Native, who boasts seasonal form of 1211, is the first choice among punters with a 7/2 price. He can get the job done under the right set of circumstances, but his loss last year to Hurricane Fly puts me off of him a bit. Solwhit started very brightly this season, but lost to Go Native on the 28th of November in the Grade 1 Fighting Fifth. I do think he is a definite place finisher and I’m hoping he rises in price from 6/1 to around 8/1, but that may be wishful thinking. The spoiler here is Binocular, who has had an uneven year to say the least. He ran third in this race last year to Punjabi and was bested twice this season by Go Native. He got things back on track at Sandown in February but needs to dig deep and find his best if is to take this one. I would like more value than the 8/1 price currently offers. Khyber Kim is certainly worth a look and his only two runs this year were a Grade 2 and a Grade 1 victory. He looks a talented sort and is one of the feathers in Nigel Twiston-Davies cap. I think he’s a more realistic 8/1 shot than Binocular. Punjabi never really got going this year, but could bounce back with a solid performance. He was beaten by Khyber Kim earlier in the season and also lost to Solwhit at Punchestown last year. He’s an 8/1 shot and will need his best form to make a statement here. The final mention goes to Celestial Halo who represents Paul Nicholls in this one. I think he’s a first-rate jumper with plenty of ability but he needs the right type of trip to make this happen. I do like his price at 10/1.
The Glenfarclas Handicap Chase is the last race of the day and I don’t see this one going beyond the two classy French jumpers that seem to have this race licked. Garde Champetre and L’Ami are two quality contenders who specialize at the distance. They are both short-priced for a reason, with Garde Champetre at 2/1 and L’Ami at 3/1, but I think an each-way forecast is tough to beat here if you’re not looking to go crazy.