Looking to squeeze some extra value out of Gold Cup day, the final day of the Cheltenham Festival? No worries - we're here to cast an expert eye over the day's races.
Over to our resident horse-whisperer...
TRIUMPH HURDLE
The opener on Cheltenham's final day looks to be between Ivanovich Gorbatov (7/2) and Zubayr (5/1). The former won well at Leopardstown around Christmas, beating then 4/7 Fav Let's Dance (14/1) by 2¼ lengths, but was disappointing on his latest outing - finishing 4th as an 8/13 Fav behind Footpad (9/1) and Let's Dance. Zubayr, on the other hand, won well in his latest outing at 5/1 and is well fancied by Paul Nicholls.
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Our tip: An each-way punt on Let's Dance.
ALBERT BARTLETT NOVICES HURDLE
Three catch the eye in this Grade 1 Hurdle race. The Ben Pauling-trained Barters Hill has been red hot fave and is now at 4/1, having won all seven of his Rules Race outings - having to dig deep to beat Ballydine on his last outing. Shantou Village (4/1) is in with a shout whilst Blue Et Rouge (10/1) should go well.
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Our tip: We can't see past Barters Hill at 4/1.
CHELTENHAM GOLD CUP
The biggest race of the day is easily the Cheltenham Gold Cup, which looks to be between a handful of horses. Last year's winner Coneygree will not be defending his title due to a shock injury so Willie Mullins is set to lock horns with entries from Gordon Elliot and Colin Tizzard.
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Elliot's runner, 3/1 Fav Don Cossack is difficult to look past on improving ground, whilst Tizzard's Cue Card (4/1) will be there or thereabouts. But the preference of the Mullins runners is for last year's runner-up Djakadam (11/4) and Don Poli (9/2). The latter has been known to grind out results, which is a good quality for this race - whilst Djakadam is feared. Expect him to be in the top three with the two Dons.
Our tip: It's got to be Don Cossack at 3/1 if the ground is good.
FOXHUNTERS CHASE
Look out for former Olympic Champion cyclist Victoria Pendleton's mount Pacha Du Polder (18/1) in this one. A lot was made of her unseating at Fakenham in February, but she proved the doubters wrong with an emphatic 29L victory at Wincanton this month. 3/1 Fav On The Fringe won this race last year by a ridiculous 17L and beat Pacha Du Polder in the Foxhunters Chase at Aintree in a later meeting.
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Our tip: On The Fringe at 3/1 looks tough to beat.
GRAND ANNUAL
The Grand Annual closes out the 'Greatest Show on Turf' and this one looks wide open, but the stats don't make good reading for 10/1 Fav Next Sensation. Last year's winner hasn't won a race since, whilst only two favourites since 2002 have gone on to win over the 2m62y track.
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For us, Velvet Maker at 12/1 looks a very good each-way shout. The seven-year-old gelding has had the tough task of overturning Douvan since his last win at Naas in November - finishing 3rd and 2nd behind the Mullins machine.
Our tip: Throw your money on Velvet Maker each-way.
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Prices are subject to fluctuation. Correct as of 6:00pm, Thursday March 17th.
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Topics: Horse Racing