Weatherbys Champion Bumper Preview - Cheltenham Festival

Published on: 15/03/2017

Weatherbys Champion Bumper Preview - Cheltenham Festival

March 15, 2016 17:30pm - Cheltenham

Cheltenham Festival

Distance: 2m 87y

Grade: 1

Runners: 23

Winner: £42,712

Going: Good to Soft

The Dan Skelton-trained Cause Toujours is our pick to challenge race favourite Carter McKay in the Champion Bumper.

The yard is showing good form and are excited about the prospects of Wednesday`s entry. He showed great pace on his racecourse debut and will go well if ridden sensibly here. Prior to that race, he unseated his rider in a point-to-point race in Ireland but word has it that the five-year-old has shaped up well in preparing for this race and should definitely be considered.

He will be up against the much-fancied Carter McKay, who set tongues wagging with his win at Naas last month. He overcame West Coast Time that day with a performance that confirmed his status as favourite for this race. However, he lacks big-field experience and that could go against him. A drift in price leading up to the race also suggests a waning in confidence amongst those with the inside track on this horse.

While those to are attracting all the attention, Western Ryder has slipped under the radar somewhat. The Warren Greatrex-trained gelding beat a decent field at Ascot before coming in second when conceding 21lbs to Nicky Hendersons Daphne Du Clos at Newbury. As a result, any price of around 10/1 looks like a good shout for this young prospect.

Betting odds and tips

Cause Toujours was available at 8/1 at the time of writing but can be expected to shorten on race day. Any price at 7/1 or above is worth backing in the win market. Those looking for an each-way punt should seek out a price of around 10/1 for Western Ryder.

You can back Cause Toujours to win at a best price of 8/1, while each-way pick Western Ryder is available at 10/1 with Bet365. .

Remember, Bet365 are offering guaranteed best odds on all Cheltenham races and a 100% deposit bonus up to £200 for new accounts.

Weatherbys Champion Bumper winners - Last three years:

2014: Silver Concorde (6) - Mr Robbie McNamara (Dermot Weld)

2015: Moon Racer (6) - Tom Scudamore (David Pipe)

2016: Ballyandy (5) - Sam Twiston-Davies (Nigel Twiston-Davies)

By Neil Morris

Published on: 15/03/2017

Any odds displayed within this preview were correct at the time of publishing (15/03/2017 11:02:49) but are subject to change.