Caspian Caviar Gold Cup Odds and Preview – Horse Racing Betting December 16

Odyssey can write new chapter at Cheltenham

Horse Racing Betting

Caspian Caviar Gold Cup History and Trends

This valuable handicap chase was first run at Cheltenham in 1963 when the race was known as the Massey Ferguson Gold Cup. It retained that title until 1980 but has had several sponsors and title changes since. Boylesports supported the race from 2006 to 2009 as the Boylesports.com Gold Cup and the 2010 renewal was run as the Vote A P Gold Cup as part of a successful campaign to encourage racegoers to vote for Tony McCoy in the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award. In 2011, noted racehorse owner Andy Stewart backed the race to promote his Spinal Research charity until it was taken over by its current sponsors.
Paul Nicholls has trained the winner in four of the last eight years and is responsible for three of the 11 overnight entries this season. This is very much a race for the top National Hunt yards with smaller stables struggling to compete now that the season is in full swing.
Only one of the last six winners has carried more than 11st to victory and, since the turn of the century, no chaser aged older than eight has been successful and only three have been placed from 49 runners stretching back 13 years.
Official ratings have also been significant lately with the last five winners all being rated between 133 and 149, though that would include all bar the top two this year.
This is run on the New Course at Cheltenham and its demands are different to the Old Course, on which Splash of Ginge was a surprise winner of the BetVictor Gold Cup last month. Second Starchitect, third Le Prezien, fourth Ballyalton and fifth Romain De Senam all re-oppose on better terms and age is also against Nigel Twiston-Davies’ charge in this.

The ante-post market suggests Haydock winner Clan Des Obeaux will be the pick of the Nicholls’ trio but he’ll need a career-best to defy top weight. A similar comment applies to Deauville Dancer while Long House Hall’s lengthy absence will surely count against him.

KING’S ODYSSEY was on the heels of the leaders and travelling strongly when falling in this last year. Dropped 7lb since, he is now only a pound higher than when scoring over course and distance on heavy going at the start of last year and a recent spin at Carlisle over a trip too short should have blown away a few cobwebs. With a clear round, the 8/1 with Stan James could be a decent bet.

Caspian Caviar Gold Cup Current Best Odds

Clan Des Obeaux 9/2, Starchitect 6/1, Le Prezien and King’s Odyssey 8/1, Ballyalton 9/1, Splash of Ginge 10/1, Romain De Senam 12/1, Long House Hall 14/1, Foxtail Hill 16/1, Guitar Pete 20/1, Deauville Dancer 33/1