The first race of the Cheltenham Festival, the Supreme Novices Hurdle is heralded by the mighty ‘Cheltenham Roar’ and is a punters favourite.
We want to look beyond the horses heading the prices and give you some help picking those outside shots.
Look for bookies offering 4 places instead of 3 for this one, and there are some potential upsets here. E.J. O’Grady saddles No Flies On Him who comes to the Festival with a recent second place at Punchestown against some powerful opposition.
At 33/1 this is definitely one for the places.
With Gordon Elliot’s Brighter Days Ahead most likely to enter the Ryanair Chase we’ll overlook that one, but another interesting runner might be Favour And Fortune who hails from Alan King’s yard and at 40/1 is surprising value.
Be aware he’s also entered in the County Handicap Hurdle so keep an eye on the declarations.
Gordon Elliot enters Firefox, who will almost certainly run in this race and can be found at 10/1, while another likely challenger is the Henderson runner Jerikon Du Reponet who comes fresh from a decent victory going away from the field at Doncaster.
There’s always plenty of scope for a surprise in the opening race of the Cheltenham Festival and while favourite Ballyburn is justifiably so, we like the look of the latter two mentioned to take him on.
The six-year-old horse made a remarkable impact in the Grade 1 Tattersalls Ireland 20th Derby Sale Novice Hurdle at the Dublin Racing Festival, leading to heightened anticipation for its next appearance at Cheltenham.
The primary focus is now on which race Willie Mullins, the head of Closutton, will choose for the horse.
Ballyburn currently stands as the favorite in two prominent options: the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle and the Baring Bingham Novices’ Hurdle.
Ballyburn, co-owned by football agent David Manasseh, stands out as a highly promising young horse for this year’s Festival. However, trainer Willie Mullins has been somewhat reserved regarding the horse’s specific target.
There is widespread speculation that Ballyburn will lead a dual charge in the Supreme, where he is currently the even-money favorite with Coral, teaming up with Annie Power’s offspring, Mystical Power.
Willie Mullins has acknowledged that, based on breeding, the Baring Bingham, which is five furlongs longer, might be a more fitting choice. For this longer race, Ballyburn’s odds are currently listed at 3-1.
