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Jonbon
(2.10 Sporting Life Arkle Challenge Trophy Novices’ Chase, Tuesday - 13/8)
No trainer has won the Arkle more often than Nicky Henderson and his unbeaten chaser Jonbon looks banker material to provide the legendary trainer with a record-extending eighth win in the race.
This contest is being dubbed as a straight shootout between Jonbon and Irish Arkle scorer El Fabiolo, but the former deserves to be a clear favourite on his overall profile.
A brother to 2016 Arkle hero Douvan, his jumping has generally been exquisite this season and it’s hard to envisage El Fabiolo putting up the sort of impressive display that Jonbon did when easily landing the Grade 1 Henry VIII Novices’ Chase at Sandown in December. He shapes quicker and slicker than his main rival.
Of course, you wouldn’t have been bowled over with his latest performance when surviving a scare to win a match race at Warwick, but he wasn’t exactly catching pigeons on his final start before chasing home Constitution Hill in last year’s Supreme Novices’ Hurdle either.
Expect a much-improved display when it matters most. He looks all class.
(5.30 National Hunt Challenge Cup Amateur Jockeys’ Novices’ Chase, Tuesday - 10/1)
This race may be run over a slightly shorter trip than was the case before 2020 but deep reserves of stamina remain essential to success here, and that is exactly the strong suit of Minella Crooner.
Ruled out of last year’s Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle due to a setback when ante-post favourite, he has been running with credit over much shorter trips than ideal this season and looks tailormade for stepping up to three miles and six furlongs in the National Hunt Chase.
He may have been turned over as 8/13 favourite last time at Fairyhouse but he needed to run in that contest in order to qualify for this Festival target, and there was no shame in finishing runner-up there to Grand National dark horse Velvet Elvis, an experienced second-season chaser.
Trained by Gordon Elliott, who would be seeking a record-equalling sixth win in the race if Galvin had run in his name when scoring for Ian Ferguson two years ago, he rates a cracking each-way bet at the prices and should prove a stronger stayer than Gaillard Du Mesnil.
(3.30 Paddy Power Stayers’ Hurdle, Thursday - 6/1)
There has been a serious overreaction to Flooring Porter’s pair of defeats to start this season and he can reign supreme once again in the Paddy Power Stayers’ Hurdle.
Connections of the remarkable improver have never made any secret of the fact that his entire campaign revolves around peaking at the Cheltenham Festival, so reading too much into his defeats in the Lismullen Hurdle and Christmas Hurdle could be unwise.
Sure, it isn’t ideal that he has missed some work in his Cheltenham preparation due to a setback but Gavin Cromwell’s string on the whole appears to be in a better place heading to the Cotswolds than might have been the case in recent years when he still emerged with winners.
For all that this year’s Stayers’ Hurdle is a deep affair, no horse in a three-mile hurdle this season has managed to post a performance that beats what Flooring Porter produced in winning this race for the past two years. Recent reports from the champion’s camp suggest the madness that made him so brilliant at the last two Festivals is also returning.
When Baracouda was chasing his third consecutive win in the Stayers’ Hurdle back in 2004 he was sent off 8/11, and Big Buck’s returned at 10/11 when pulling off a hat-trick in this race in 2011. Flooring Porter could represent serious value at 6/1 if back to his best.
(4.50 Mrs Paddy Power Mares’ Chase, Friday - 13/8)
Willie Mullins can continue his domination of the Mares’ Chase with a third straight win since its inception through the highly exciting Allegorie De Vassy.
This will be the Susannah Ricci-owned six-year-old’s biggest test over fences and she heads to Prestbury Park with less chasing experience than ideal, but she might just be in a different league to her rivals.
A useful hurdler last season who lowered the colours of Brandy Love in the Grade 3 Solerina Mares Novice Hurdle, she would have been a massive player in the Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle but missed the meeting due to a setback. Her jumping was impressive for a chasing debutante when winning the Grade 2 Dawn Run Mares Novice Chase at Limerick and it purely looked to be freshness rather than waywardness that gave Paul Townend a scare at the first when notching another Grade 2 win at Thurles in January.
Held in extremely high regard by the Closutton maestro, she has the potential to dominate this race for years to come and will be very tough to beat.
(5.30 Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle, Friday - 7/1)
Gordon Elliott loves targeting the final race of the Festival, named after his old boss. He sent out the first and third in 2017, the first and fourth in 2018, the second and third in 2019, and he was also narrowly touched off with the runner-up in both 2012 and 2015. Another strong Cullentra team has been assembled for this year’s handicap, and the most interesting contender is Imagine, who looks bound to improve for stepping up to the extended two and a half miles for the first time.
He has been keeping good company on home soil this season, splitting the talented Hercule De Seuil and Three Card Brag when runner-up in the Grade 3 For Auction Novice Hurdle, and he emerged with credit from finishing second to fellow Festival hope Hunters Yarn at Navan last time, when Inothewayurthinkin and American Mike were almost seven lengths behind the selection. It would be disappointing if he is not more talented than a British rating of 139, being an unexposed five-year-old with just four hurdles runs.
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