Cheltenham Festival Day One Full Preview

With just a few hours before the Cheltenham Roar, we’re taking one last final look at the opening day’s fixtures for the 2011 Cheltenham Festival. Stay tuned for the latest tips and analysis and be sure to check out our videos for a rapid-fire rundown of all the day’s races.

Supreme Novices

Cue Card doesn’t look particularly appealing from a payout perspective at 2/1 odds but it’s going to take an awful lot to beat him. You can’t hold the loss against Menorah against him as he really just came up against a horse that looks to be a class apart. Al Ferof will likely try to jump on the lead and he looks an interesting win-only shout at 8/1. The hot play might wind up being Marsh Warbler who was withdrawn from the JCB Triumph hurdle and entered here. At the time of this writing he’s priced at 25/1 but that will certainly drop as the each-way punters pile on.

Arkle

This one is a bit up in the air but Medermit looks to be taking the bulk of the money with that 11/4 price of his. Realt Dubh appears a step above the rest from a speed perspective but it’s going to require a top-class effort in order for Realt Dubh to get home here. Captain Chris definitely looks in the mix and both contenders are trading around 9/1. Medermit would not be a major shock though – any one of five can be there or thereabouts on the run-in.

Spinal Research

One of the preferred betting races on the opening day, this one has a number of potential winners and no clear standout. Reve De Sivola looks a solid wager at a decent price that hovers around 9/1. There is some real value in the 20s with Adams Island around 20/1 with Rainbow Hunter trading at a 25/1 price tag. Both of those should be prominent each-way contenders. Sunnyhillboy just doesn’t have the type of form we’re looking for while 16/1 Rare Bob could make a statement. 12/1 Blazing Bailey enters off two wins on the bounce and looks solid from a speed perspective.

Champion Hurdle  

Both Menorah and Hurricane Fly are now out to 7/2 and punters can expect some pretty wild swings in this one. Oscar Whisky is getting plenty of late attention while Khyber Kim is now into 10/1 from 14/1. Binocular’s withdrawal has definitely reshaped the market a little bit but the 9/2 on Peddlers Cross looks to be a bit short despite the unbeaten record. If we see the bottom of him today, we just might see him hit the finish line first.

Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase

This is a real specialist type of race and it certainly isn’t for the faint-hearted. O’Neill and Bolger saddle a pile of contenders including 9/2 Garde Champetre and L’Ami both decently-priced at 9/2 and 5/1, respectively. Sizing Australia deserves respect and may wind up flourishing over the Cross Country course. 14/1 Gullible Gordon could be interesting but it will be interesting to see if he finishes the race or not.

Mares Hurdle

Quevega has been beat down to 4/5 as she seeks a three-peat here with Ruby Walsh confirmed for the trip and that’s really quite short for a mare that hasn’t been on track much in the past calendar year. L’Accordioniste might tempt punters a bit more with that 8/1 price tag and she did put in a very solid shift last time out at Cheltenham. Santera looks a decent shout from an each-way standpoint at 33/1.  

Centenary Novices Handicap Chase

This is probably the toughest race of the day, but easily the most profitable when looking at the betting markets. 8/1 Quantitativeeasing will likely have McCoy up for this one and his record coming in looks relatively solid. He is just below top-weight at 11-11 but 7/1 Tullamore Dew looks the sharper contender. Ruby Walsh and Paul Nicholls team up on Definity and the 7/1 price indicates plenty of confidence from the betting public.