denman

The final day of the Cheltenham Festival 2011 is arguably the most exciting, especially as it features the Gold Cup, a race which has the highest prize money and features the best three-mile chasers in the world.

Cheltenham Gold Cup Latest Odds 2011

There are likely to be five horses which go off at single figure odds thanks to a gamble on Kempes which started several months ago and now sees the Willie Mullins horse trading at a best price 11/1 with Paddy Power but as short as 9/1 with Ladbrokes.

There was nothing fluky about the horse’s win in the Hennessy Gold Cup, landing a surprise result at 25/1 and he might yet take advantage of what could be a weak renewal.

Even so, many people backed Imperial Commander last year on the basis of Nigel Twiston-Davies’ confident quotes and the trainer believes that his horse will once again take all the beating, with Ladbrokes offering a best price 4/1 that the champion wins the race for the second time.

Paddy Power have an excellent offer available on the race where they will refund your bets if your horse finishes second to Imperial Commander and that could appeal to backers of Long Run (5/1), with the young horse having comfortably got the better of Kauto Star in the King George Chase.

Nicky Henderson has not had a great Festival and it’s mainly down to the withdrawal of the highly-fancied Binocular in the Champion Hurdle, although the six-year-old looked the part when winning at Kempton and could go close in this race.

Paul Nicholls has two very lively chances in the guise of Kauto Star and Denman, the duo who were supposed to battle it out for last year’s Gold Cup before the Commander took centre stage.

Kauto Star apparently scoped badly after his defeat in the King George and the 11-year-old is 15/2 with William Hill to claim a third crown thus emulating the recent achievement of Best Mate, while Denman is a 13/2 chance with bet365 and could present a sterner challenge.

Denman broke on to the scene in 2008 and hammered his stable mate into the ground, although a series of injuries and breathing problems means that the horse has struggled to regain its best form.

Pandorama is a 12/1 chance to win the race with Ladbrokes and the horse has the class to win a Cheltenham Gold Cup although it appears that the ground is going to count against him. Meanwhile, Midnight Chase has been backed in the past 48 hours and Coral now offer a best price 16/1.

Who will win the Cheltenham Gold Cup 2011? That is the question on everyone’s lips as the highlight of the National Hunt calendar is upon us. The Cheltenham Festival gets under way on Tuesday, with the big race, the Cheltenham Gold cup, hitting the start tape on Friday. The big race of the meeting is the Gold Cup, and the build up for that has been going on pretty much since the finishing of the last race twelve months ago, which was won by Imperial Commander. The Gold Cup is a Grade 1 National Hunt chase, and horses five years and older are eligible for entry. The distance goes over 3 miles and two and a half furlong, with twenty two obstacles in the way. This is the most valuable, non handicap chase in Britain. Now it is time for Punter and Bookmaker to square off again, at the prestigious meeting as tensions rise again for the big meeting. The line up in the race is just incredible, with all winners from the last four runnings of the race taking the tape. Imperial Commander sets out to defend the crown, while two time winner Kauto Star looks to secure a hat trick of wins, while 2008 winner Denman is also in the mix. But while the established guard will all draw the majority of the betting, punters are not being too shy in not looking beyond some outsiders. So who will win the Cheltenham Gold Cup 2011?

Long Run (11/2 at Victor Chandler), one of the most highly touted youngsters in the National Hunt, is ready to take stage as well, and is drawing a lot of interest. He is the young pretender in the pack, and after winning the King George in astonishing fashion, taking the crown ahead of Kauto Star (who came in third), and it was something which firmly put his name amongst the potential winners here. However, the one hesitation of the rookie, is that in two previous runnings at Cheltenham, he has looked less than confident, and maybe the course does not suit him. Long Run finished third in both of those previous race meetings, and the biggest questions was over the jumping technique on the famous course. There was just not the same conviction over the jumps which he had shown in previous times. Long Run wasn’t out of things completely, but it just showed exactly what a raw talent he is, and are things that time and experience will probably iron out. Long Run has the edge over Kauto Star in the betting at the moment, and that will be on the strength of his King George triumph.

Defending champion Imperial Commander (7/2 at SportingBet) has just such a good track record at Cheltenham, winning five out of six runnings over the jumps there. He hasn’t ran since November, and while that will be a concern for punters, trainer Nigel Twiston-Davies is carrying good form at the moment, and Imperial Commander looks to be full of running. While a lot of the headlines will gravitate towards Kauto Star and Denman, it is Imperial Commander who looks the most assured of the three main challengers to be honest. The last ten winners of the Cheltenham Gold Cup have been in the top three of the betting, so the likelihood is that gives a strong leaning towards Imperial Commander, who is favourite at the bookmakers at the moment. The front runners in the Cheltenham Gold Cup betting at the moment, is Imperial Commander, Long Run and Kauto Star. So the youngster has the potential to make a big impact, but must get over his Cheltenham jitters.

Kauto Star (13/2 at Extrabet), two times winner of the Cheltenham Gold Cup, took a tumble last year, and hasn’t has a season which has seen him on top of his game. Couldn’t match what Long Run had to offer at the King George. Does that mean he should be counted out of your betting? Of course not. His record at Kempton (where the King George is ran) simply wasn’t great to start with, and there were concerns over his health there. But Trainer Paul Nicholls insists that Kauto Star is as good as ever, even though age may now be working against the 11 year old. Sixteen of the last seventeen Gold Winners have been aged between seven and nine, perhaps casting doubt on Kauto Star’s chances. But then, along with Imperial Commander and Denman, all three will be over nine, something to be considered as you ask yourself who will win the Cheltenham Gold Cup? Kauto Star is still coming in shorter and shorter all the time in the odds, and will always stay at good value none the less. Cheltenham is more of a stamina test than the King George, so we could yet still see Kauto Star land his third Gold Cup crown, and there probably could not be more of a popular winner. There could be a major deciding factor for Kauto Star, and that could be the presence of Ruby Walsh in the saddle, something which trainer Nicholls insists will make a big difference. AP McCoy was in the seat for the third place finish behind Long Run at the King George, and the feeling is that Walsh and Kauto Star are a better, more familiar team.

What of Denman (7/1 at Paddy Power), Kauto Star’s stable mate? Ran brilliantly in the Hennessey, giving away two stones in weight to Diamond Harry, but Denman is also looking fitter after being treated for health issues as well. If he is fully fit, then he has to be near the front of the pack, and just like Kauto Star, should be worth taking at a good price. We could genuinely see a resurgent Denman at Cheltenham this week. Probably more of a sound each way bet in terms of value than Kauto Star realistically, but you never know with him. So who will win the Cheltenham Gold Cup? Well, the bookies are predicting something unexpected. The stats weigh heavily against any of the three established brigade, Imperial Commander, Denman and Kauto Star picking up a victory (such as the stat that no runner over the age of 10 years old has won since 1969), and while those three will take the bulk of the betting, it could be a good day for the bookies on Friday. Long Run, who may be considered as an upset if he were to win by some, also doesn’t have a convincing record at Cheltenham to firmly put him at the front of the betting. The course could also be a bit quicker than normal because of the dry weather, and the Course usually runs at good to soft, so the pace may be picked up, working against the older runners.

So where to look for an outsider? Maybe Pandorama (14/1at Bet365), but he could be hampered if the track is running a big faster than normal, but does have the class to compete. Tidal Bay (20/1 at SkyBet) has a good running record at Cheltenham, and is good value in the betting at the moment, for a very strong finishers. If the course is running a bit faster than normal, than it could bring What a Friend (50/1 at Stan James) into play, who, like Pandorama has the class and with the going in his favour, could also make an impact. So will we see an established name hit the line first, or will we see, as bookies are predicting, a winner come from nowhere? It is time to decide who will win the Cheltenham Gold Cup 2011 for your horse racing betting, and while the field looks narrow, there is plenty of great value around at the moment to get your wagers down early.

It will be here before we know it, and already the fires are being stoked ahead of the 2011 running of the Cheltenham Gold Cup on March 18th. It is hard to ignore some of the stories going around for the big race at the moment, from the forgotten legend of Denman, to the threat of Pandorama coming to take down all of the champions. For all intents are purposes, there will be two horses in the race, and that is Imperial Commander and Kauto Star. These are the two stars of the National Hunt, who had traded blows over the past four years. Kauto Star is gunning for his third Cheltenham Gold Cup, while Imperial Commander will be keen to show the dominance he showed last year in crossing the line first. While Kauto Star was heavily backed last year to complete the Gold Cup hat trick, his uncharacteristic fall at fence 19, meant that the 8/11 favourite had to hand over his crown. Imperial Commander, ridden by Paddy Brennan, wasted no time for local trainer Nigel Twiston Davies and romped home a 7/1 winner ahead of Denman. Imperial Commander also landed the Betfair chase to his 2010 honours, as is showing as favourite in the Antepost betting for the 2011 Cheltenham Gold Cup. Shopping around, sees the best price of 9/2 at William Hill on the defending champion at the moment. But it will be interesting now to see how fit and ready Kauto Star is again, after falling on his neck at the last running of the race. Kauto Star was all set up to run the King George VI Chase just after Christmas, but the race was postponed until January 15th, 2011 because of the bad weather.

Avid punters will see Kauto Star go for a record fifth win at the prestigious race at Kempton. Interestingly, the big Kempton race could now be won twice in the same year by the same horse, and Coral are giving out odds of 5/1 for Kauto Star to win the Kempton feature in January and in December this year. We could have had an idea now of how well Kauto Star is primed for the Gold Cup, but we’ll just have to wait a little bit longer. Still, with his great record in the Cheltenham Gold Cup, the richest non-handicap chase in Britain. It ran over 3 miles and 2 and a half furlongs, over the famous old course. It is open to horses which are five years or older only, being a Grade 1 National Hunt chase. It is one, if not the biggest spectacle in the horse racing calendar, and the show stopper for the Cheltenham Festival itself. But former Champion Denman seems to be the forgotten horse of the pack, even though the 10 year old is looking extremely fit and ready to go. His defeat at the Hennessy Gold Cup won’t have done him any favours in the betting, where he is now currently out at around 8/1 with Bet365 for Cheltenham. Age is really against Denman now, so it seems, and the record books show that no horse over 10 has won the Gold Cup since 1969. He may just be running of fuels of past dreams than realistic chances of staying with the two front runners.

But there appears as if there may just be two strong challengers for the front this year, which could make for a tremendous race. Diamond Harry, who beat Denman for the Hennessy Gold Cup, looks ready to take to the field for the Cheltenham Gold Cup. He was pulled from the Lexus Chase due to weather, and the owners were happy enough to take the time to get his ready and setup instead for the Gold Cup. Diamond Harry showed well during 2010, and in the Hennessy victory, he saw off not only Denman, but Burton Port, Carruthers and Pandorama, all who have hopes for this year’s race. The eight year old has only been chasing for a year now, but he really could be a massive threat, as long as there is none of his old fussiness around. Being priced at 14/1 with Stan James are the moment, Diamond Harry is well worth an early price, and he will probably shorten substantially. Pandorama makes for the other interesting entrant, and is back at 16/1 at Boylesports in the Gold Cup Antepost betting. Pandorama put in some strong strides to win the Lexus chase (Diamond Harry wasn’t there) from a strong field. This is the big wildcard, the outsider which is being touted around as a potential dark horse for the Gold Cup. After the Lexus Chase win, the odds on Pandorama were cut for the Gold Cup. There may be just too much to do against such a higher quality of opposition at Prestbury Park, but is showing in the odds and worth tracking.

Pin badges, tea-towels, car stickers or t-shirts. Take your pick of the merchandise and choose your corner for the big fight between Kauto Star and Denman! To my mind, the Cheltenham Festival is just too big to narrow it down to one race between two stablemates but the Gold Cup bandwagon has been on the roll for a while now and evryone seems to have an opinion about who will come out on top. For me, that has to be Kauto Star (7-10 with sportingbet). He trounced Denman (a general 4-1) here last year and has won both races since, edging out Imperial Commander (9-1 with Paddy Power and William Hill) when not fully wound up on his reapperarance this season at Haydock before routing the opposition in a fourth King George at Kempton in December. What would worry me about Denman is that he’s failed to complete in two of his last three starts and may be lacking a little confidence whereas Kauto Star appears to have improved in that department as he’s matured. The Gold Cup, of course, is just one of several championship races this week. Tuesday’s Champion Hurdle is a fascinating contest – what will current favourite Go Native (4-1 with sportingbet) find when pressed, for example, and how fit is the other great Irish hope Solwhit (13-2 with the same firm)? I wouldn’t desert Punjabi (8-1 with Coral), who will relish the quicker ground and showed his class when winning this 12 months ago. The Queen Mother Champion Chase will determine whether Master Minded (10-11 with totesport) retains his title as Europe’s top two-mile chaser. Paul Nicholls‘ seven-year-old probably has the lightly-raced Kalahari King (a general 5-1) and last year’s Arkle winner Forpadydeplasterer (a general 9-1) to beat, though the Ditcheat handler is also expecting a big run from Master Minded‘s stable companion Twist Magic (widely available at 7-1). The Irish hold a strong hand in the Arkle Challenge Trophy Chase with Captain Cee Bee (a general 11-4), winner of the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at the Festival in 2008, a leading fancy. He would have gone very close to beating Sizing Europe (5-1 in most places) at Leopardstown on Boxing Day had he not fallen at the last and has won since. Somersby (4-1 with most layers), unbeaten over fences so far, looks the pick of the home defence in this. Big Bucks is hard to oppose again the World Hurdle (a general 8-13) but what’s my value banker of the meeting? For that, I’m waiting for Friday and the Triumph Hurdle. Alaivan may have been well beaten by Carlito Brigante (5-1 in most places) at Leopardstown in December but he pulled much too hard that day. He was really impressive when ridden with more restraint at Fairyhouse last month and, Group standard on the Flat, can outclass his rivals in the final-day opener. Edward O’Grady‘s charge can be backed at a general 4-1.

Many of us won’t need reminding that the highlight of the National Hunt season is taking place in March, with Cheltenham providing us with four days of high quality horse racing that represent one of the busiest periods of the UK betting calendar.

Starting on Tuesday 16th March and finishing on Friday 19th March, this four-day period will see the bookmakers really go to town with their free bet offerings. With so many people wanting to bet on the Cheltenham Festival these days, you will see many bookies increase their new customer bonus, while existing customers can also expect to see a few emails in their inbox which offer them a free matched bet.

It doesn’t matter if you’re not the world’s biggest horse racing enthusiast as the bookmakers don’t always specifically require you to place qualifying or free bets on a particular market. Therefore, if you’re predominantly someone who bets on soccer, tennis or cricket, then you can often simply take advantage of the firms wanting to appeal to the many potential customers who will be betting on some or all of the twenty-six races that are being run at Cheltenham.

It’s particularly worth keeping your eyes peeled for what William Hill, Ladbrokes and Coral are prepared to offer new and existing customers. The ‘Big Three’ in terms of UK high street presence aren’t renowned for being overly generous with their free bet offering, although horse racing is a hugely important sport for these firms and we might expect to see them double their current £25 free bet offers or even quadruple them. Therefore, this might be the perfect time to open an account with these bookmakers if you haven’t already done so.

As far as betting on the Cheltenham Festival is concerned, the races are very competitive and it’s hard work to make a profit. If you are looking to place some horse racing wagers and increase your balance, you need to be disciplined and only pick a handful of races in which to place a bet. There are many ‘bankers’ that get tipped ahead of the Festival, although previous years have shown us that very few of these good things actually finish first in their race!

The highlight event of the week is the Gold Cup, which takes place on Friday 19th March. There’s the exciting prospect of Kauto Star and Denman going head-to-head once again, with Paddy Power offering a best price 11/8 that the former wins this race for the third time, although it was Denman who won the event in 2008. Ladbrokes offer 9/4 that no other runner lives with the high cruising speed of the Paul Nicholls horse.

Dunguib runs in the first race of the Festival and will be heavily backed to get the punters off to a flyer. Paddy Power and Coral both offer 5/6 that there plenty of hats thrown into the air as the horse passes the post in first place, and this appears to be one of the few occasions where an odds-on favourite merits the price.