The 2023 Cheltenham Festival is just around the corner and punters are already gearing up for the prestigious four-day meeting.
The top National Hunt horses, jockeys and trainers will battle for massive amounts of prize money and the right to be included on the Cheltenham roll of honour.
All of the top bookmakers have now published their Cheltenham odds, which has sparked a ton of betting activity on their sportsbooks.
Read on as we look at the schedule for the 2023 Festival before highlighting three horses we think will be primed to run massive races at the meeting.
Cheltenham Festival 2023 Schedule
•Tuesday, March 14 – Champion Day – The standout race on the first day is the Champion Hurdle, which features the top two-mile hurdlers around. Other highlights are the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle, Arkle Chase and the Mares’ Hurdle.
•Wednesday, March 15 – Ladies Day – Day Two is dominated by the two-mile Champion Chase. The Glenfarclas Cross Country Handicap Chase and Weatherbys Champion Bumper are other noteworthy races on the card.
•Thursday, March 16 – St Patrick’s Day – The three-mile Stayers’ Hurdle takes centre stage on the third day. The Marsh Novices’ Chase and Ryanair Chase also attract plenty of interest among sports bettors.
•Friday, March 17 – Cheltenham Gold Cup Day – The final day of the Festival is all about the Cheltenham Gold Cup – a three mile two furlongs race featuring the finest staying chasers on the planet.
Cheltenham Festival 2023 Top Bets
Jonbon – Arkle Chase
The Nicky Henderson-trained horse finished second behind Constitution Hill in last year’s Supreme Novices’ Hurdle before winning at the Grand National meeting at Aintree.
Anything Jonbon achieved over hurdles was a bonus, as the horse was initially bought by owner JP McManus with a chasing career in mind.
The seven-year-old is unbeaten over bigger obstacles and looks a banker bet to emerge victorious in the Arkle Chase on the opening day.
Delta Work – Glenfarclas Cross Country Handicap Chase
Delta Work broke plenty of hearts last season after storming up the Cheltenham hill to pip legendary stablemate Tiger Roll in the Cross Country Chase.
With Tiger Roll now enjoying a well-deserved retirement, Delta Work will be tough to stop in his bid to win this race for the second time.
The five-time Grade 1 winner has run several excellent races this season and it is difficult to imagine his colours being lowered at the Festival.
Shishkin – Ryanair Chase
Henderson has an excellent chance to get another winner on the board when his hugely talented Shishkin tackles the Ryanair Chase on the third day of the Festival.
The nine-year-old has previously won the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle and the Arkle Chase, but ran disappointingly in last year’s Champions Chase.
Shishkin failed to fire on his seasonal reappearance at Sandown before recently returning to form over a longer distance at Ascot. He will be tough to beat in the Ryanair.
