'Battalion of superstars' - Which trainers are bullish ahead of Cheltenham?

The waiting will be over very soon, as the Cheltenham Festival kicks off on Tuesday and it’s going to be a cracking four days.

Ireland may well dominate once again but Britain could pose a much bigger threat this time around and provide a serious challenge.

Here are some of the more bullish trainers ahead of the Cheltenham Festival, on both sides of the Irish Sea.

Gordon Elliott

Gordon Elliott has had an excellent season so far and while it took him until the very last race to get on the board last year, it should be a very different story this time around.

Ballyfad and El Cairos are his leading novice hurdlers this term and he has been particularly bullish about the latter, who could be one of the quickest horses the trainer has ever had.

The Supreme Novices’ Hurdle is the obvious target for him and, according to his trainer, it’ll take a good one to beat him.

Brighterdaysahead has long been the apple of her trainer’s eye and he’s expecting a much better performance in the Champion Hurdle this year. She needs to prove that she can perform to her best at Cheltenham but Elliott has never lost even an ounce of faith.

Elliott also has a strong team of mares this year and that includes Oldschool Outlaw, who beat Bambino Fever in November, and the very smart Wodhooh is reportedly one of the trainer’s best chances of the week.

Willie Mullins

Willie Mullins is entitled to be the most confident trainer around, as he has a battalion of superstars to go to war with at Cheltenham and he landed 10 winners in 2025.

Narciso Has was the ante-post market leader for the Triumph but he’s been ruled out through injury and another JP McManus-owned Mullins inmate replaced him in the betting, which tells you everything you need to know about his squad.

French import Proactif looks like a serious Triumph contender off the back of his victory over stablemate Macho Man on his first start for Mullins. Mighty Park was a very impressive winner of a maiden hurdle at Fairyhouse and looks like the real deal.

Majborough should prove very hard to beat in the Champion Chase now and the only horse that could possibly get near him is stablemate Il Etait Temps

Meanwhile, Final Demand, Fact To File and Gaelic Warrior are just some of the many other names which Mullins is confident about.

Ben Pauling

Ben Pauling just gets better with every season and that is quantified by the increasing levels of success he achieves.

The Gloucestershire-based trainer believes he’s got his biggest and best Cheltenham Festival team this season and he’s definitely one to watch.

Expectations are high for King George winner The Jukebox Man in the Gold Cup - Pauling reportedly wouldn’t swap him for anyone.

He also has a decent string of novice chasers, and No Questions Asked, Mambo Number Five and Vanderpoel are also worth watching.

Paul Nicholls

Paul Nicholls used to fire in Cheltenham Festival winners but has found victories hard to come by in recent years. Caldwell Potter got him on the board last year and Regent’s Stroll appears to have every chance of winning the very same race this time around.

No Drama This End has been a huge talking point throughout the season and the form of his Challow Hurdle victory is working out well.

Paul Nicholls absolutely loves this horse, while the rapidly improving Tutti Quanti is another of the trainer's best.