Cheltenham Festival 2025: Betting Tips for Day 2

We're a week away from the Cheltenham Festival kicking off, and there is still some value to be found in the markets. So, let's take a look at each race on Day Two of the festival.

Style Wednesday Betting Tips

Below, you can find Conlan's tips and insights for the seven races on Day 2 of the Cheltenham Festival. The odds were correct at the time of writing, all prices are NRNB.

Turners Novices Hurdle Tips

Kicking off the second day of the festival is the Grade 1 Novice’s Hurdle, better known as the Turners and formerly known as the Baring Bingham. Willie Mullins and Paul Townend have taken the last three renewals of this race, and their promising gelding Final Demand is currently the market favourite.

He has won his last 2 races (2m5f & 2m6f) by a combined 27 lengths without much effort being required. The well-known ‘Challow Curse’ has resulted in all of the winners of the Grade 1 Coral Challow Novices’ Hurdle being beaten subsequently in this race, which market rival The New Lion has amongst his unbeaten four races.

He runs under the famous green and gold silks of JP McManus, with trainer Dan Skelton making an unusual appearance for the McManus setup. I do think it will be a tussle between the top two in the market, but I suspect that WPM will be left in an excellent position to make this one his fourth in a row.

The Yellow Clay is a horse I have followed particularly closely, picking up a Grade 3, Grade 2 and Grade 1 in progressive and successive races over in Ireland throughout the winter months. There has been much uncertainty from Gordon Elliot regarding where he was going to choose to send this horse, holding entries in both the Turners and the Albert Bartlett, but it has recently been revealed that he is aiming to send him over the shorter trip instead.

I do think that Final Demand will turn out too good for him, but with Jack Kennedy making a miraculous recovery and returning to the saddle after a horrific leg break in November, the iconic pairing's chances of picking up Cheltenham Grade 1 glory have only been bolstered.

Brown Advisory Novice Chase Tips

A race littered with impeccable Irish chasers, the Brown Advisory takes place over a stout 3m½f and is for horses aged 5 and above. Five of the last ten winners of this race have gone on to have a crack at the prestigious Gold Cup on the final day of the following festival, proving the class that this race brings about in the chasing division.

A horse whom I hold in the highest regard at the moment is Ballyburn. He has taken magnificently to fences in the last 9 months, losing out only once to the mighty Sir Gino at Kempton over Christmas.

He ran superbly at Cheltenham this time last year in the Gallagher Novices Hurdle (now known as the Turners) and, despite this being a step up in trip for him, I think he will manage it just fine and will win as impressively as he did the last time he came to town.

For a place in this race, I rate the chances of Croke Park. Gordon Elliott claims him to be a ‘real two-and-a-half-miler’ despite being a Grade 1 winner over 3m½f, but I can humbly respect the fact that he probably knows a bit more than me about the strengths of his own horses.

Irrespective of this, if he goes into the race, I think he has an excellent chance to put up a strong performance and finish in the frame.

He followed Ballyburn home in the Ladbrokes Novice Chase at Leopardstown lto over a shorter 2m5½f, and his experience over this extended distance could go a long way in helping his chances. Gordon Elliott will be hoping for his first ever winner in this race, and with three strong contenders, I think that Croke Park will give him the best chance of doing just that.

Coral Cup Tips

The first handicap of the day is the ever controversial Langer Dan’s playground, the Coral Cup. Thankfully for everybody else with a horse in this race, it appears that the Skelton team have opted to send him to the Stayers’ on the Thursday, yet he does still hold an entry and may get the opportunity to show his best Spring self over the shorter distance.

Now that the inevitable jokes are out of the way, we can talk about who really has the best chance in this race. Skelton currently has the current market leader Be Aware, and with good reason, putting in good performances in Graded company in his last two runs.

He has placed in every race he’s taken part in so far, winning once over 2m½f on his debut appearance over hurdles at Newbury in January last year. However, he has also decided to send Joyeux Machin into this race, who I noticed in the Betfair Exchange Handicap Hurdle at Ascot in February.

This run was a particular eye-catcher for me as Harry Skelton smartly held him up for a large part of the race behind winner Altobelli, who is now looking likely to appear in this race for a rematch. Due to the nature that Joyeux Machin finished in this race, he has only gained a measly 2lb, whereas Altobelli has had an extra 10lb lumped onto him for his heroics. Because of this, Joyeux Machin will be a whopping 12lb better off in this race, which has potentially been the target for the Skelton yard all along.

The pattern of his previous results shows to me that this has long been in their sights, and I think he gives them the best chance of making it three years running of bringing home the Coral Cup.

Cross Country Chase Tips

The Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase is for the real stayers of the game. Unfortunately, the 2024 rendition of the race had to be cancelled due to heavy rainfall throughout the Tuesday, rendering the cross-country course out of use.

Thankfully, the weather is forecast to be relatively dry on the run-up to the festival, so we are hoping it will go ahead this time of year and we can be treated to the marathoners of the horse racing world.

This race typically tends to have a place for a short-priced favourite, which bodes well for current favourite Stumptown. For his recent battling victory at Cheltenham in the December Cross Country event, he has been afforded an additional 8lb to his weight, but I am confident that he will be able to overlook this.

Gavin Cromwell is known for sending over prospects who he thinks have a real chance, and with an already impeccable record here despite pulling up in the Ultima this time last year, he is an astute stayer with plenty of experience who should be up to the challenge.

Gordon Elliott has an immaculate record in this race, taking 5 of the last 7 renewals of this race. However, for my next best, I am going to look in the direction of a trainer who has never won this race before.

The Nicky Henderson-trained Mister Coffey looks to be inching closer to a big cross-country victory with every effort he gives, with his last two efforts coming at Cheltenham and finishing a strong 2nd in both.

Most recently, he finished a length behind Stumptown, where he was 9lb better off. This time around, he finds himself a whopping 14lb lighter than Stumptown, which could be crucial in the run-in. Nicky will be hoping the French bred stayer will give him his first win in this race, and potentially add to what he, and we, will hope to be a great first day of the festival.

Queen Mother Champion Chase Tips

The Queen Mother without a doubt holds host to the world's best chasers. In the past, we have seen legends such as Sprinter Sacre, Altior and Moscow Flyer all take this race more than once. Going into this race, any number of horses have the ability to write their own names into Cheltenham legend.

Willie Mullins will be hoping to see Energumene win this for the 3rd time, whilst Barry Connell will no doubt be emotionally willing Marine Nationale on to surge to victory in the everlasting memory of Michael O’Sullivan.

However, for me, there has been one horse in this race who has been doubted to no end and for what reason, I am still yet to get my head around. I am of course talking about the ever-present Jonbon.

A 9-time Grade 1 winner, beating the likes of Energumene, Edwardstone and El Fabiolo into complete submission. All of this doubt because he has jumped poorly on two occasions, in less than ideal conditions, in the last three years at Cheltenham.

He is the best 2m chaser in the world right now and I am of the firm belief that he will put all of these doubts to bed come the 12th of March.

As previously mentioned, the running of Marine Nationale will no doubt be an emotional one, with the recent devastating loss of a true sportsman, Michael O’Sullivan, who would’ve been in the saddle on the day.

Since his victory in the Supreme in 2023, we haven’t seen the best of this horse, until he recently ran in the Ladbrokes Dublin Chase at Leopardstown in early February. He finished a modest 12 lengths ahead of Champion Chase rival Gaelic Warrior, and only 2 lengths behind another opponent in Solness.

Marine Nationale kept on superbly towards the back end of this race and I think this has come at the perfect time for him to have a crack at this race. It would be safe to say that if he was to win, there wouldn’t be a dry eye in the house.

Rest In Peace, Michael O’Sullivan.

Grand Annual Chase Tips

This is a Grade 3 Handicap ran over 2 miles. Since 2021, the race has been moved from Cheltenham’s new course to the old course, and in this time there hasn’t been a single favourite that has won, with the last 3 runnings seeing the favourite on the day at least managing to find a place in the top four.

The current market favourite is Libberty Hunter, who finished runner up in this last year behind Unexpected Party who is anticipated to make a repeat of his heroics from last year. The statistics don’t appear to be supporting the chances of this happening, however, with there being no repeat winners of this race in the last 60+ years.

My choice for the winner of this race is My Mate Mozzie. The Gavin Cromwell gelding has shown his worth in graded chases, finishing runner up behind Found A Fifty in the Grade 1 Novice Chase at Leopardstown on Boxing Day in 2023.

Most recently, after a bout on the flats over August and September, he returned to fences at Leopardstown in a listed handicap meeting, finishing 2nd to An Peann Dearg where he looked like he could’ve done without the extra furlong. His last victory over fences came over C&D, which he will be looking to regenerate this form come the festival.

Gavin Cromwell will be aiming for a 1-2 in the Grand Annual this year, despite having never won it before. With My Mate Mozzie in front, I think that Path d’Oroux won’t be found too far behind him.

At the time of writing, he holds three entries for the festival, with this race seeming to suit him the best given his recent performances over a shorter 2m trip, recently picking up a Class 2 Novice at Cheltenham in October last year, just managing to fend off fellow entry Jazzy Matty by a head.

The French bred gelding finished 3rd in this race last year, where he gave weight to Unexpected Party and Libberty Hunter, who are set to run in this race again. This time around, he is much better off in the weights, particularly with Libberty Hunter who just couldn’t do enough behind Unexpected Party the last time they faced each other here. Gavin Cromwell will be hoping that this classy chaser has the ability to reverse the form this time around.

Champion Bumper Tips

Wednesday caps off by showcasing up-and-coming jumps horses, but in the format of a flat race over 2m½f. The Weatherbys Champion Bumper has become a relatively easy Grade 1 pickup in recent years for the 17-time Irish National Hunt Champion Trainer Willie Mullins, winning 5 of the last 7 renewals which included a hat-trick from 2020 to 2022.

Out of the current crop of WPM’s 8 choices in this race, I particularly like the look of Aqua Force, who ran a superb race lto in a 2m1f bumper at Gowran Park in February, winning by a devastating 28 lengths.

The mare has since been acquired by JP McManus to add to his battalion that is already teeming with talent, with a weight allowance in place giving her an advantage already over the geldings here.

For my each way chance, I’m choosing to side with Fortune De Mer. Dan Skelton cannot seem to get enough of this horse and has claimed it to be the dark horse to follow coming from his yard for the festival.

He has previously put in some big runs in bumpers at Cheltenham, finishing runner up and then going on to win the following race. Both races were run over C&D and this bodes well for him to put in another strong performance to polish off the second day of racing.