Cheltenham Festival tips and betting Guide

Every year in mid March the world's best national hunt horses descend on Cheltenham for the Festival to try and make history and win one of jumping's big races. What is known as the 'Olympics of Racing' each day sees crowds of over 40,000 people travel to the Gloucestershire course and Cheltenham Festival betting is one of the industry's annual highlights.

Now over four days, Cheltenham sees top class jumping action, with each day playing host to a Championship (feature) race.

The highlight of the opening day, Tuesday, is the Champion Hurdle run over 2m ½f (8 hurdles), a true speed test for experienced hurdlers. The novice equivalent of this event is the Grade 1 Supreme Novices' Hurdle, 2m ½f (8 hurdles), run on the same day and is the curtain raiser to the whole meeting.

On Wednesday, the fastest chasers in training contest the Queen Mother Championship Chase, 2m (12 fences), while the novice division fight out the Grade 1 Arkle Chase, run the previous day. Wednesday's action draws to a close with the Champion Bumper, a flat race run under National Hunt rules. The Grade 1 Sun Alliance Novices Chase, (3m ½f - 19 fences) is the novice equivalent and can often provide a stepping stone to the Gold Cup itself in future years.

Thursday's feature is the Ladbroke World Hurdle (formerly known as Stayers' hurdle), run over 3m (12 hurdles) provides the ultimate stamina test for experienced hurdlers on Day 3, while the novices contest the Grade 1 Sun Alliance Novices Hurdle, 2m 5f (10 hurdles).

Friday, the final day, gets underway with the Triumph Hurdle, and continues with the Blue Ribband event, the Cheltenham Gold Cup, a steeplechase run over 3m 2½f (22 fences) and the ultimate test of speed and endurance for the best chasers around.

The meeting draws to a close each year with the Vincent O'Brien County Hurdle. A hurdles event, run over 2m 1f, this is one of the most competitive races of the meeting, if not the whole national hunt season. It's, in the past been, a big betting race with plenty of horses coming here as so-called handicap snips and despite being a handicap don't be surprised to see some of the runners going onto better things.

We have all the best Cheltenham Festival 2010 betting and Cheltenham Festival 2010 odds in our dedicated centre.

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Cheltenham 2010 Schedule

Tuesday 16th March

1.30 Spinal Research Supreme Novices' Hurdle 2m 1/2f
2.05 Irish Independent Arkle Challenge Trophy Steeple Chase 2m
2.40 William Hill Trophy Handicap Steeple Chase 3m 1/2f
3.20 Smurfit Kappa Champion Hurdle Challenge Trophy 2m 1/2f
4.00 Glenfarclas Cross Country Handicap Steeple Chase 3m 7f
4.40 David Nicholson Mares' Hurdle Race 2m 4f

Wednesday 17th March

1.30 National Hunt Steeple Chase Challenge Cup 4m
2.05 Neptune Investment Management Novices' Hurdle 2m 5f
2.40 RSA Steeple Chase 3m 1/2f
3.20 Seasons Holidays Queen Mother Champion Steeple Chase 2m
4.00 Coral Cup (Handicap Hurdle) 2m 5f
4.40 Fred Winter Juvenile Handicap Hurdle 2m 1/2f
5.15 Weatherbys Champion Bumper (Open NH Flat Race) 2m 1/2f

Thursday 18th March

1.30 Jewson Novices' Handicap Steeple Chase 2m 5f
2.05 Pertemps Final (Handicap Hurdle) 3m
2.40 Ryanair Chase 2m 5f
3.20 Ladbrokes World Hurdle 3m
4.00 Byrne Group Plate Handicap Steeple Chase 2m 5f
4.40 Fulke Walwyn Kim Muir Challenge Cup Handicap Steeple Chase 3m 1 1/2f
5.15 Festival Ladies Charity Sweepstake in Aid of Cancer Research UK 1m 5f

Friday 19th March

1.30 JCB Triumph Hurdle 2m 1f
2.05 Vincent O'Brien County Handicap Hurdle 2m 1f
2.40 Albert Bartlett Novices' Hurdle 3m
3.20 totesport Cheltenham Gold Cup Steeple Chase 3m 2 1/2f
4.00 Christie's Foxhunter Steeple Chase 3m 2 1/2f
4.40 Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys' Handicap Hurdle 2m 4 1/2f
5.15 Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Steeple Chase 2m 1/2f