UK Horse Racing Tips

In February, we wrote a very early article on the upcoming Cheltenham Festival and discussed some of the leading candidates for this year’s event. With one week until the meeting gets underway, we’re here to offer you a few more helpful tips and hints as to which horses look set to win at one of the most prestigious meetings of the National Hunt season – and here they are.

Douvan

In our previous piece, we fancied Faugheen to win on the festival’s opening day for the second year in a row, however he has been pulled after suffering an injury in the build-up to the event. Trainer Willie Mullins has plenty of incredible mounts running once again though, and fellow French-born thoroughbred Douvan may be the horse to watch in the Arkle Trophy on Tuesday.

Douvan romped home to win the Supreme last year and it would take a brave man to back against the Mullins-Ruby Walsh combination again in 2016. While Vaniteux is capable, Douvan, who is currently 2/5 with Coral to win the Arkle, is superior and should make all of the running to win comfortably. He certainly produced a dominating performance at Leopardstown in January to send a timely reminder to his nearest challengers.

Annie Power

For some, it might be a bit too soon to start trusting Annie Power again. Last year, she was clear in the Mares’ Hurdle and Ruby Walsh fell at the final fence – a huge stroke of luck for the bookmakers as they were set to be crippled for £50 million. This year, she’s back but will be entered in the Champion Hurdle instead after Faugheen’s injury. Annie Power is certainly capable but punters will be caught in two minds after last year’s mishap.

As the latest Cheltenham Festival odds reveal, Annie Power is priced at 6/4 with Coral to win the Champion Hurdle. Identity Thief may be her closest challenger and has the potential to cause an upset but Walsh should ride Annie Power to victory barring any unexpected jumping errors. On paper, she’s the best horse in the race and you should take her to eradicate any memories of last year’s defeat by bouncing back and winning this year.

Don Cossack

The Cheltenham Gold Cup is the highlight of the week’s racing and there are plenty of top contenders in this year’s race. It’s almost impossible to pick between the likes of Vautour, Djakadam and Don Cossack but the latter may be preferable after recent events. Prior to January’s Betbright Trial Chase at Cheltenham, Djakadam was the bookmakers’ favourite but a second fall at the circuit has put many people off.

Meanwhile, there are rumours that Vautour isn’t 100% and that leaves the door wide open for Don Cossack to romp home and snatch a Gold Cup victory for trainer Gordon Elliott. Without a shadow of a doubt, Don Cossack is a top-rated horse and he would be a deserving winner of this prestigious race but it’s almost too close to call. In fact, it could even be one of the closest races in Gold Cup history if Vautour is at his best.

Comments are closed.