Cheltenham Gold Cup Preview - Cheltenham Festival
Published on: 15/03/2019
Cheltenham Gold Cup Preview - Cheltenham Festival
March 15, 2018 15:30pm - Cheltenham
Distance: 3m 2f 70y
Grade: 1
Runners: 16
Winner: £351,688.00 2nd: £132,500.00 3rd: £66,312.00 4th: £33,125.00 5th: £16,625.00 6th: £8,312.00 7th: £4,125.00 8th: £2,125.00
Going: Good to soft
Dubbed the Blue Riband of Steeplechasing, the Cheltenham Gold Cup is one of the most hotly anticipated races on the calendar. And this year`s renewal looks set to be a cracker.
The first four horses from last year`s race are all back for another go including champion Native River. And there are plenty of young upstarts looking to get in on the action too.
Native River has appeared twice this season, producing two solid but unspectacular performances. Getting back to a course and conditions that suit him will make all the difference and he has a big chance of becoming the first back-to-back winner since Best Mate in 2002.
Last year`s runner-up Might Bite has not had the best of seasons. A recent wind operation may help to get him back on track, but it would be a massive shock if he bounced back by winning the Gold Cup.
The Pat Kelly-trained Presenting Percy is the frontrunner in the betting markets. The eight-year-old enjoyed a steady rise before his Pertemps win in 2017 and immediately took well to fences winning four times last season, bagging the RSA Chase here at Cheltenham in the process. This race just feels like a natural progression of a stellar career so far.
Let`s talk about Kemboy. The seven-year-old is on the rise and had claimed five wins from eight chase starts. Fourth at the JLT last year, he went on to win at Punchestown and followed that with impressive wins at Clonmel and Leopardstown where a dominant triumph in the Savills Chase set him up for a crack at this. A fine each-way pick at 11/1.
Cheltenham Gold Cup Winners - past five years:
2014: Lord Windermere (8) - Davy Russell (Jim Culloty)
2015: Coneygree (8) - Nico de Boinville (Mark Bradstock)
2016: Don Cossack (9) - Bryan Cooper (Gordon Elliott)
2017: Sizing John (7) - Robbie Power (Jessica Harrington)
2018: Native River (8) - Richard Johnson (Colin Tizzard)
Latest Betting odds:
Presenting Percy 4/1
Clan Des Obeaux 5/1
Native River 13/2
Bellshill 11/1
Kemboy 11/1
Might Bite 12/1
Thistlecrack 16/1
Al Boum Photo 16/1
Elegant Escape 20/1
25/1 bar
You can back Presenting Percy to win at 4/1 and Kemboy (E/W) at 11/1.
By Neil Morris
Published on: 15/03/2019
Any odds displayed within this preview were correct at the time of publishing (15/03/2019 10:34:27) but are subject to change.
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