DAY one of the Cheltenham Festival is now so close we can almost touch it. Tuesday, March 11 sees the curtain raising on the best week's racing of the jumps season, with a packed house guaranteed at Prestbury Park on each of the four days.
Supreme Novices' Hurdle
The opening race of the Festival usually boasts a hot favourite but it has been a real nightmare for punters in the past 10 years. Five of the past eight winners have gone off at a double-figure price so backers of likely favourite IRVING who currently trades at around 2/1 will be hoping for a change in fortunes.
Arkle Trophy Chase
This is a race for the purists that has been won by some of the most majestic chasers to grace the sport. The two-mile distance makes accurate fencing a must along with a touch of class.
Simonsig and Sprinter Sacre were both odds-on winning favourites in the past two seasons and CHAMPAGNE FEVER will be hoping to follow in their footsteps. He won the Supreme Novices' Hurdle last season so has what it takes to score at Cheltenham.
The Champion Hurdle
Day one's highlight will see a field of quality hurdlers line up for the race that separates the men from the boys. There has been a slight scare around the well fancied MY TENT OR YOURS but trainer Nicky Henderson reports his hope to be back to his best ahead of the Festival.
But the biggest cheer would be for Irish hope HURRICANE FLY who is the current 5/2 favourite for the big race. He's going for a hat-trick of victories and will bring the house down if he succeeds.
OLBG Mares' Hurdle
QUEVEGA has already written her name into the Cheltenham record books with an incredible five consecutive wins in this race. She had to work harder than ever to score 12 months ago but trainer Willie Mullins has targeted this race ever since then and it would an amazing moment for jumps racing if she makes it a super six.
Read more a more indepth analysis about these races at: http://bookmakers.co.uk/news/betting-preview/cheltenham-festival-day-one-betting-odds-and-tips/
