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Cheltenham Festival Tips 2026
Dual Gold Cup Winner Galopin Des Champs
© Healy Racing PhotosOver 500 horses are entered and a total of 28 races are staged at the National Hunt's showpiece in March so it is helpful to get expert Cheltenham Festival tips and interesting betting angles when delving into the form.
Find more Cheltenham Festival ante-post tips and trends here plus high-value Cheltenham free bets and betting offers.
Cheltenham Festival Preview 2026
Watch out for our 2026 Cheltenham Festival preview show coming up in February.
In the meantime our Editor Vincent Finegan has picked out his nap of the day for all four days of the Cheltenham Festival.
Day 1: Champion Day - Tuesday 10 March 2026
Nap - El Cairos - Supreme Novices' Hurdle
El Cairos achieved a high level of performance in Bumpers last season when owned and ridden by David Maxwell. Now in care of Gordon Elliott he is the only novice hurdler I have seen so far this season that has genuine star quality. He was in the process of producing a scintillating display at Leopardstown over Christmas when a freak incident after jumping the final hurdle ended with him hitting the deck. Presuming he gets his maiden hurdle victory out of the way before Cheltenham he will be difficult to beat in the Supreme Novices Hurdle.
Day 2 - Ladies Day - Wednesday 11 March 2026
Nap - Sober - Turners Novices' Hurdle
Sober represents a fascinating prospect in this Novices’ Hurdle for staying types. Formerly a high-class Flat performer in France, he remains unbeaten in three starts since joining the Willie Mullins stable, a sequence headlined by a dominant victory in the Queen Alexandra Stakes at Royal Ascot. While his two hurdles successes are objectively difficult to quantify - and a strict reading of the form suggests he has some ground to make up on official ratings - the ease of those victories cannot be ignored. Should he fully translate his superior Flat ability to this discipline, he profiles as a formidable contender in this field.
Day 3: St. Patrick's Day - Thursday 12 March 2026
Nap - Teahupoo - Stayers Hurdle
Teahupoo looks one of the bets of the week at Cheltenham this year. He won this race in 2024 and in my view was unlucky in last year’s renewal when beaten by Bob Olinger. On that occasion Jack Kennedy waited in front before being run down in the closing stages by Bob Olinger. In this season’s Christmas Hurdle at Leopardstown Kennedy kicked on turning for home and quickly put the race to bed with Bob Olinger 7 lengths adrift in second place. A similar positive display at Cheltenham will make him extremely difficult to beat again.
Day 4: Gold Cup Day - Friday 13 March 2026
Nap - Wrappedupinmay - Princess Royal Challenge Cup Open Hunters' Chase
Irish-trained entries appear to hold the strongest hand in this year’s Hunters’ Chase. While the podium finishers from last season - Wonderwall, Its On The Line, and Willitgoahead - all return to the fray, the most compelling case can be made for a stablemate of the defending champion. Wrappedupinmay showed solid ability over hurdles during his tenure with Paul Nicholls, but he has reached a new level of form since transferring to the Sam Curling yard. Having secured two authoritative victories in recent Open Point-to-points, he arrives here in peak condition and looks poised for a significant performance.
More Cheltenham Festival tips
You can find more Cheltenham tips for each day of the festival below:
