Willie Mullins© Photo Healy Racing
With Christmas upon us, most people will have been counting down to the big day for some time now but for Racing fans, the big day is still 12 weeks away. For National Hunt enthusiasts, festive feelings of excitement and anticipation don't come close to those felt in the build up to the Cheltenham Festival and the only date in the diary to kick start four days of indulgence is 11th March 2014!
With three months of the jumps season already in the form book, there have been plenty of clues on both sides of the Irish Sea about who the leading contenders are for the Festival's 27 races and as the countdown steps up a gear with a bumper schedule of Festive racing, here's a look at the biggest eye-catchers and market movers at the halfway point on the road to Cheltenham.
The biggest mover in the market for the Festival's feature race, the Cheltenham Gold Cup, has been for last season's Ryanair Chase winner, Cue Card, who was hugely impressive when winning the Betfair Chase at Haydock in November ahead of some very useful rivals, including reigning Gold Cup champion, Bobs Worth, winner of the race in 2011, Long Run, as well as rising stars Silviniaco Conti and Dynaste.
Prior to that victory, questions surrounded the Colin Tizzard trained runner's ability to stay beyond three miles but the manner of the seven-year-old's latest win put paid to those suggestions. His performance in the King George Chase on Boxing Day will go a long way in determining whether he will contest the Gold Cup, for which he is currently a 7/1 chance having been available at 25/1 before his win in the Betfair Chase and victory at Kempton would probably see him leapfrog both Bobs Worth and Sir Des Champs at the head of the Gold Cup betting.
The most competitive of the four Championship races is arguably the Champion Hurdle, for which no fewer than six runners boast solid claims for landing the main race on day one of the Festival. Leading the way currently is The New One from the Nigel Twiston-Davies yard who cemented his place at the head of the market following his six length win over Zarkandar in the International Hurdle at Cheltenham recently.
Winner of the Neptune Novices' Hurdle at last season's Festival, The New One has adapted well to life outside of novice company winning his only other start of the campaign by ten lengths ahead of 2012 Champion Hurdle winner, Rock On Ruby, at Kempton in October.
The five-year-old is a best price 7/2 to win the 2014 Champion Hurdle, for which he was as big as 20/1 before his reappearance but with a host of rivals behind him in the betting, there is little value to be had about the current favourite and others equally make plenty of appeal, none more so than two times winner of the race, Hurricane Fly.
Winner of the Champion Hurdle in 2011 and 2013, Hurricane Fly set the record for number of Grade One wins when landing his 17th top level success at Punchestown in November. Although that victory had little impact on his odds to win for a third time at Cheltenham, his eye-catching form singles out the Willie Mullins trained nine-year-old as potentially great value to win retain his Champion Hurdle crown.
Paddy Power is currently offering a stand out 13/2 about 'The Fly' making it a hat-trick of wins in the Champion Hurdle, a brave call by anyone's standards about a record breaking horse that has not lost in seven and has just one defeat to its name in 15 starts.
That said, My Tent Or Yours, runner-up in the Supreme Novices' Hurdle back in March made an impressive start to the new campaign when landing the Fighting Fifth at Newcastle last month and the Nicky Henderson trained runner is capable of having a say in matters along with Jessica Harrington's Jezki who has looked good in two winning starts so far this season and the pair are 4/1 and 9/1 respectively for Champion Hurdle success.
It would also be foolish to write off the chances of Our Conor, who has yet to race over timber since winning the Triumph Hurdle in March, with the only outing for the Dessie Hughes runner coming in a handicap on the flat at Naas in October. The four-year-old is due to line up in the Ryanair Hurdle at Leopardstown over Christmas, after which, more will become clear about his Champion Hurdle claims but at the moment he's rated a 5/1 chance.
Lining up alongside Our Conor in the Ryanair Hurdle could well be Hurricane Fly, Jezki and My Tent Or Yours in what should be a thrilling clash at the Dublin track where Willie Mullins rising star, Annie Power, is also declared to run. The five-year-old mare is unbeaten under rules with eight wins on the bounce, with her latest victory coming in a Grade Two contest at Ascot a few weeks ago and she's currently 12/1 to become the first mare to win the Champion Hurdle since Dawn Run, who was trained by Willie's father, Paddy Mullins, in 1984.
Of the other Championship races at the 2014 Festival, Sprinter Sacre still dominates the market as the 2/5 favourite to win a second consecutive Queen Mother Champion Chase despite missing the Tingle Creek earlier this month after scoping badly and Big Buck's is the favourite to win the World Hurdle despite being sidelined with injury for over twelve months.
Paul Nicholls stable star has not run since winning Newbury's Long Distance Hurdle last December and a leg injury meant that Big Buck's missed his chance to win the World Hurdle for a fifth time. Connections will be hoping to put that right in 2014 but with a reappearance yet to be confirmed, the 3/1 about the ten-year-old picking up where he left off in the 2012 renewal should be approached with caution.
At Fisher's Cross is muted as being one horse capable of upsetting Big Buck's World Hurdle bid but Emma Lavelle's winner of the 2013 Albert Bartlett Novices' Hurdle flopped on his seasonal debut in this year's renewal of the Long Distance Hurdle and a better performance will be required next time out to justify the current quotes of 6/1 to win at Cheltenham in March.
Meanwhile, all eyes will be on the reigning World Hurdle champion Solwhit when he runs for the first time this season in the woodiesdiy.com Christmas Hurdle at Leopardstown on 28th December, for which the Charles Byrnes trained eight-times Grade One winner is currently a 7/1 chance retain his crown with Paddy Power.
Other horses that have been well supported in the ante post markets include Champagne Fever, who is the clear favourite to win the Arkle on the opening day of the 2014 Cheltenham Festival after just one run.
The Willie Mullins trained winner of last season's Supreme Novices' Hurdle has progressed straight to chasing after just one year as a hurdler and his only start over bigger obstacles came at Punchestown in November where he was pushed out to an easy victory in the hands of Ruby Walsh. The odds about the six-year-old winning the Arkle have subsequently contracted from 7/1 in to as short as 11/4 and victory at Leopardstown over Christmas, where he is next engaged to run, would see that price shorten further.
Champagne Fever's stablemate, Analifet, is another runner from the Willie Mullins yard that has been the subject to market support following recent back-to-back victories at Punchestown and Fairyhouse. The three-year-old arrived at the County Carlow stables from France in the Spring after just one winning start across the Channel and a nine length victory followed by a six and a half length success on his two starts in Ireland suggest this youngster is a hugely exciting prospect, so much so, he is already the 4/1 favourite for the Triumph Hurdle.
The Mullins artillery doesn't stop there with the Bagenalstown based handler also boasting the favourite for the Champion Bumper in the form of Shaneshill, who has won two National Hunt Flat races by a combined 13 lengths in the past month and is already 8/1 from 16/1 to win the Bumper as Mullins looks to land the race for a third straight year.
Last year, he won the race with Briar Hill who heads the betting for the Supreme Novices' Hurdle after two wins this season, the latest of which came in the Grade One Navan Novice Hurdle on the 15th December but he only beat one rival and as such, can be backed at 14/1 to win the Festival opener as it remains a wide open contest at this stage.
In total, Willie Mullins currently has eight favourites for the Cheltenham Festival's 27 races and looks well equipped to successfully defend his top trainer title in March.
With just 12 weeks to go until the Festival, plenty is known about the leading protagonists and the hectic Christmas racing calendar in both Ireland and England will no doubt provide a few more clues about who will be the one's to watch as the Festival edges closer and trainers make their final preparations in the new year.
All odds quoted are taken from www.cheltenham-festival.co.uk
