Cheltenham Festival 2026: Best Bets for Day 2

With Ladies Day a week away, BettingLounge's racing expert Ben goes through some of his favourite bets for the day, and puts them in one place for you. So, let's just dive into his NAP, his NB and a Longshot!

You can also check out all of his interests for the day, written before final declarations, so prices may have changed.

🥇 Best Bet

I, like anyone, love landing a nice price now and again, but I love getting winners more, and sometimes, it just needs to be that simple. So my NAP of the day is Majborough in the Queen Mother Champion Chase.

Before the news of Marine Nationale's withdrawal from the race, I was already considering the JP McManus chaser in this race, and whilst conditions may not be exactly what he'd like, I think it may be a penalty kick.

His jumping at the DRF was superb, and he has been given a Timeform rating of 179, which is ludicrous. 10/11 still feels like value, even if it is a bit short.

🥈 Next Best

My Next Best could also be a NAP, to be honest, just because I believe that Stumptown will retain the Cross Country heavily. Indeed, he has a fantastic chance again here, and it is difficult to overlook him at the price.

He has clearly been campaigned for this race, and he comes with a lot of confidence from Gavin Cromwell, which is only a good thing in my eyes.

Yes, it may be slightly tougher than last year, with the weight difference a little bigger. Yet, he remains one of the best cross-country horses for Cheltenham, and the price of almost 3/1 feels like a bit of a steal.

👀 Longshot

Finally, my long shot of the day comes in the final race, and I am going for a bit of an out-there one in the Champion Bumper, which is known for throwing up big prices.

So, step to the front Mets Ta Ceinture. Trained by Dan Skelton since November, he is planning to unleash this filly onto the UK scene in the Bumper, and who could blame him?

She already holds black-type status, having finished third in a group race in France, and the belief is she can go further in England. At 20/1, I feel there isn't a better each-way long-shot (that is actually a longshot) on Wednesday.