The 2022 Cheltenham Festival was another great week in jumps racing. The four-day meeting at Cheltenham Racecourse served up some thrilling action.
Here is a look at what the three best performances were across the week this year.
A Plus Tard Landing the Cheltenham Gold Cup
After finishing second in the race behind stablemate Minella Indo in 2021, many pundits doubted whether A Plus Tard had the stamina to win the Cheltenham Gold Cup. Henry De Bromhead’s runner produced a performance to make a mockery of those claims.
Under the hands of jockey Rachael Blackmore, the pair hit the front of the field at the last fence. They then powered up the hill at Cheltenham to win the Blue Riband contest in impressive fashion.
Blackmore became the first woman to win the Gold Cup with this success. She will be hoping to complete a major double this season at the Grand National. Those looking to place a bet on Grand National 2022 on her runner Minella Times can pick up odds of 16/1. Last year’s winner is one of the fancied horses once again at Aintree this year.
Delta Work – Tiger Roll duel
Arguably the moment of the week at the Festival this year came in the Cross Country Chase. Tiger Roll was having the final appearance in what has been a magnificent career. He was involved in a duel with stablemate Delta Work at the end of that race, and he just missed out to the Grade One raider.
In many ways, Delta Work was the pantomime villain. The majority of the crowd were willing Tiger Roll on in the run into the finish line. It was the younger horse who won that battle, and nothing should be taken away from him.
The victory opens up a lot of doors for Delta Work in the closing stages of the season. He now tops the betting to win the Grand National at Aintree. Victory would give his trainer Gordon Elliott a fourth win in the marathon race in Liverpool.
Honeysuckle Extending Unbeaten Record
Honeysuckle went into the Champion Hurdle with some pressure on her shoulders as everybody expected her to win the Championship contest on day one of the meeting. She not only defended her crown, but it was another brilliant performance from the star mare.
De Bromhead’s runner didn’t get the best passage around the course, however, it did not disrupt her. She was full of running at the finish, stretching away from the likes of former winner Epatante and Zanahiyr.
A 15th straight success on the track is some achievement from this eight-year-old mare. She has now won 10 consecutive Grade One races. It was her third victory on the spin at the Festival, as she also won the Mares’ Hurdle in 2020.
As a multiple winner of the Champion Hurdle, Honeysuckle goes into Cheltenham history books. She is expected to have one final campaign next season before she retires.
All of the above three horses are likely to be back at the Festival in 2023 where they will be defending their respective races.
