Cheltenham Ante Post Betting Preview

The Cheltenham Festival is on the horizon, and as betting markets develop, plans get finalised and targets are confirmed, it is time for punters to get excited. There have been some standout performances in recent weeks, enough to get people thinking of the biggest festival races and based on what we have seen early in 2022, here are three horses that have caught the eye, and look set to have a successful run in them at the festival in March.

Bravemansgame – Festival Novice Chase

The Paul Nicholls yard often has a quiet spell before the festival, but this year it has been much worse than we have seen in the past. He’s had a number of runners put in below par performances, and very few winners.

One winner that has come from the yard though is Bravemansgame, and given the form of the yard, he can be upgraded for that run. He was too good for his three rivals at Newbury, and gave them 16lb or more, so this was a fantastic weight carrying performance.

Even on the bare form, that puts him right in the reckoning for the Festival Novice Chase, but if you think there is a little more to come due to the stable form we are currently seeing, then in the context of that, he has an even better chance.

Bravemansgame is 3/1 with Coral for the Festival Novice Chase

Eldorado Allen – Ryanair Chase

The front running performance from Eldorado Allen in the Denman Chase certainly caught the eye, and if anything, that muddied the water a little regarding where he would run at the festival. Having said that, he is not fancied for the Gold Cup, due to a question over the trip and the quality of the race.

However, where he is fancied is the Ryanair Chase, where we could see him taking the field along for a very long time and could be right in the mix at the end of the contest. A number of horses towards the top of the betting, including Energumene, Conflated, and potentially even Allaho, are going elsewhere, which makes this the perfect race for antepost punters.

Eldorado Allen has an each way shout, and is likely to be a much shorter price on the day

With a big price available, a front running style that can help him take the field along, and others going elsewhere, Eldorado Allen has an each way shout, and is likely to be a much shorter price on the day.

Eldorado Allen is 16/1 with Coral for the Ryanair Chase

Journey With Me – Albert Bartlett Novice Hurdle

The final horse to look at is Journey With Me, trained by Henry de Bromhead, a horse who won in Ireland recently, but will be much better over a longer trip. That was 2m3f, and after the race Henry de Bromhead put forward the Albert Bartlett as his most likely destination.

The three mile trip will test him, and it’s a risk taking him without seeing him over the trip before. However, in terms of improvers, he certainly looks like one, and of course, Henry de Bromhead knows what he is talking about when it comes to festival winners.

Journey With Me is 12/1 with Coral for the Albert Bartlett Novice Hurdle