The latest edition of the Cheltenham Festival reaches a thrilling crescendo on Friday 15 March 2024. Seven races are scheduled to entertain the massed gathering at Prestbury Park and the millions watching on TV, but standing tall above the rest is the staying chase marvel that is the Cheltenham Gold Cup.
With the final field of 12 contenders now confirmed, the late withdrawal of Shiskin has robbed the race of a little sparkle, but only a little. A scan through the entries reveals a glorious dozen of the finest equine athletes in training. 3m2½f is the trip, as the runners set out in pursuit of a place in the history books and a share of the £625,000 in prize money on offer.
Cheltenham Gold Cup: Confirmed Field of Runners and Riders
| Number | Horse | Jockey | Trainers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bravemansgame | Harry Cobden | Paul Nicholls |
| 2 | Corach Rambler | Derek Fox | Lucinda Russell |
| 3 | Fastorslow | J J Slevin | Martin Brassil |
| 4 | Galopin Des Champs | Paul Townend | Willie Mullins |
| 5 | Gentlemansgame | Darragh O’Keeffe | Mouse Morris |
| 6 | Gerri Colombe | Jack Kennedy | Gordon Elliott |
| 7 | Hewick | Jordan Gainford | John Joseph Hanlon |
| 8 | Jungle Boogie | Henry De Bromhead | Rachael Blackmore |
| 9 | L’Homme Presse | Charlie Deutsch | Venetia Williams |
| 10 | Monkfish | Mr P W Mullins | Willie Mullins |
| 11 | Nassalam | Niall Houlihan | Gary Moore |
| 12 | The Real Whacker | Sam Twiston-Davies | Patrick Neville |
Highlights
As with so many Grade 1 events at the Cheltenham Festival, a runner from the yard of Willie Mullins dominates the market. Sitting atop the pile in the main event is the defending champion, Galopin Des Champs. Already a dual winner at the Cheltenham Festival, the eight-year-old was seven lengths too good for the field in 2023 and, following a slight dip, has looked right back to his best in recent outings. Simply jaw-dropping when routing the field in the Savills Chase, he backed that up with a cosy success in the Irish Gold Cup at Punchestown. With Paul Townend in the saddle, he’s the one they all have to beat.
Unlike any other runner in the field, Martin Brassil’s Fastorslow has mastered Galopin Des Champs in the past – not once, but twice. Causing a huge upset when landing the Punchestown Gold Cup at the back end of last season, he repeated the dose in the John Durkan Memorial Chase on his first start of the current season. On the downside, he is zero from two at this meeting and was put in his place by Galopin Des Champs in that Irish Gold Cup event. Nevertheless, he may have less to fear from the market leader than most and may find improvement following a recent wind operation.
Continuing the all-Irish flavour to the top of the market is the Gordon Elliott-trained eight-year-old Gerri Colombe. Long held in the highest regard, he has won five of seven starts over fences, including a quartet of Grade 1 victories. Beaten out of sight by Galopin Des Champs in the Savills Chase, he ran as though something was amiss that day and is expected to fare much better here. Only going down by a rapidly diminishing short head in the 2023 Brown Advisory, the additional distance of this race should suit this strong stayer well.
The honour of being the shortest-priced British runner at the time of writing falls to L’Homme Presse from the yard of Venetia Williams. A perfect one from one at this meeting, having landed the 2022 Brown Advisory, he missed last season through injury but has shown plenty of sparkle on his return, including when running a solid prep for this when staying on for second over 2m5f in the Ascot Chase. A high-class operator on his day, he could prove dangerous if getting into a good early rhythm.
The fact that Bravemansgame features so low down in the betting list is a solid indication of just how hot a race this is. Paul Nicholls charge is a three-time Grade 1 winner – including the 2022 King George – and was best of the rest behind Galopin Des Champs 12 months ago. A gallant second in the King George last time out, his proven form at this track counts in his favour.
Gentlemansgame has yet to score at the highest level but mastered Bravemansgame in the Charlie Hall Chase in November and will arrive as the freshest runner in the field following a 132-day break. Hailing from the yard of the giant Shark Hanlon, Hewick was going well until falling in the 2023 edition of this and caused an upset in this season’s King George.
Of the others, Corach Rambler is the reigning Grand National champ and could come into contention if this turns into a slog; The Real Whacker and Monkfish are previous Cheltenham Festival winners; Nassalam’s chance increases with every drop of rain that falls; and Jungle Boogie is the least exposed runner in the line up on only his fourth career start.
