Champion Hurdle Betting Tips For The Cheltenham Festival

The Racing Post's Graeme Rodway has actually selected his best option for the Champion Hurdle, in addition to a horse that might be a wise each-way option at a double-figure price.


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Champion Hurdle Betting Tips


16:00 Cheltenham - The New Lion @ 5/2
16:00 Cheltenham - Poniros @ 12/1


16:00 Cheltenham - The New Lion @ 5/2


The Champion Hurdle has been on the for The New Lion ever given that he roamed home to land the Challow Hurdle at Newbury in December 2024 and his time has actually lastly shown up.


The Dan Skelton-trained seven-year-old went on to land the Turners Novices' Hurdle over 2m5f at this meeting in 2015, when he revealed a devastating turn of foot to come from behind The Yellow Clay entering the straight and win going away. That marked him down as a horse who has great deals of speed.


The New Lion has been taken care of ever since, running just two times and both over 2m, a journey which looks specific to bring out the finest in him. However, not whatever went right on his reappearance in the Fighting Fifth at Newcastle, when he fell at the second last and was beaten by last year's winner of this race, Golden Ace.


It was back to the drawing board for the Skelton group, however they developed The New Lion back up and he revealed no ill impacts from that fall when again displaying his hallmark turn of speed to land the International Hurdle on Trials day at this course. He originated from last-to-first in a slowly run race then.


He beat Nemean Lion by just a length and a half, but is value for a lot even more than that winning margin evaluating by his finishing sectionals. He ran the second-from-last furlong that day in a time of 12.91 seconds, which is rapid for a hurdler, and only won by a small margin since of the slow rate.


A much more powerful gallop in a Champ Hurdle will draw out all type of enhancement from The New Lion and this is his day. It's also the Skeltons' day and they can land their very first Champion Hurdle.


16:00 Cheltenham - Poniros @ 12/1


If there is a horse who might disturb the applecart at huge chances then it's probably in 2015's Triumph Hurdle winner Poniros, who has actually run just two times because and is open to the most enhancement of any runner in the field. He is the youngest horse in the race and this will be only his fourth hurdle start.


Poniros won last season's Triumph on his hurdling debut, which is quite a feat, and it wasn't a weak race either. The runner-up Lulamba has since gone on to win multiple races over fences this season.


Lulamba got his revenge on Poniros at Punchestown, by my selection still ran a cracker to end up second and he returned from the very best part of a year off the track to end up third behind Brighterdaysahead at Leopardstown last month. He had a quiet trip and didn't have a difficult race.


A lot more buttons will be pressed this time and Poniros has actually already shown that he is effective in a strongly run race around this course. He could take a huge advance following his run in the Irish Champion Hurdle and might easily encounter a place behind The New Lion, so is an each-way bet.


Tipster's Recent Winners


Graeme Rodway nailed two winners from three choices in his last column for bet365 readers and struck the layers with another double at Naas in the Racing Post on Wednesday.


View our Cheltenham Festival NAPs and Best options on site.


Have a look at the rest of our Cheltenham Day 1 pointers.


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