Cheltenham now good to soft for start of Festival

The 2022 Cheltenham Festival will kick off on ground officially described as good to soft on Tuesday. Clerk of the course Jon Pullin initially reported a little more ease in conditions earlier on Monday afternoon, but then issued a teatime update after a dry and sunny day.

Pullin, in charge of his first Festival since taking over the reins from Simon Claisse, is anticipating rain on Wednesday and will wait to see what happens before outlining any watering plans.

“Following a drying day on Monday, I have removed the soft in places from the going description on the Old course and switched round the going description on the New course to become good to soft, soft in places,” he said.

“We will monitor conditions and see what the weather brings before making any further decisions on watering.”

The Old course is in use on Tuesday and Wednesday with the New course taking over on Thursday and Friday.

The Cross Country course, in use for Wednesday’s Glenfarclas Chase, is good to soft, soft in places.