The Cheltenham Open Meeting 11th - 13th Nov

For many people The Open Meeting marks the true start of the National Hunt season and offers 3 days of top class racing from the iconic Prestbury Park venue. Run on the old course, the going is currently good (except the cross country course, which is hard, firm in places ) but there are 8-10 mm of rain forecast Tuesday night and the same again from Friday afternoon. This should hopefully ease the ground to the soft side of good.

Friday 11th November

Fast cards

The first day of the meeting opens with the Grade 2 Neptune Investment Management Hyde Novices hurdle over 2m 5f and this is a chance for a clear-cut winner to put down an early marker for the festival race in the same sponsorship. Shantou Village took this last season and there are 4 entries already rated 130+. The Steel Plate and Sections Novices Chase has been won in recent years by none less than Denman, Grand Crus, Dynaste and Taquin de Seuil and there are plenty of very promising chasers entered this year including Alpha Des Obeaux, Barters Hill, Rock The Kasbah and Shantou Village to mention just 4.

Saturday 12th November

Fast cards

Saturday could open with a real bang as the exciting juvenile Cliffs of Dover is entered in the Triumph Hurdle trial and just 35 minutes later Gold Cup favourite Thistlecrack is entered in the 3 mile novices chase, the latter's participation surely dependent on the advertised rain arriving. One of the big early season handicaps follows, the BetVictor Gold Cup perhaps better know as the Paddy Power or, for the older brigade, the Mackeson. Paul Nicholls' Frodon currently heads the betting but there will be a huge amount of interest in Jonjo's former World Hurdle winner More Of That.

Sunday 13th November

Fast cards

The opening Skybet Supreme Novices Trial could see Ballyandy and Moon Racer renew rivalry after the Perth set-to earlier in the season (although Ballyandy is also entered in Friday's Neptune race). The November Novices Chase has been reopened and then comes The Shloer Chase, the race in which Sprinter Sacre raised the roof 12 months ago. This year it could be another Nicky Henderson horse returning from injury, the talented but fragile Simonsig. The Greatwood is one of the biggest handicap hurdles of the season and Alan King's Dovecote Hurdle winner Winter Escape, owned by JP McManus, is already a hot favourite. A listed bumper rounds things off and with numerous competitive handicaps in between, this is guaranteed to be 3 days of top class racing.

 

I'd think Moon Racer would take all the beating Woolly and might be a decent price. I'm guessing Thistlecrack will scare off most of the opposition.

If you're looking for a bigger-priced animal, then More Of That in the big one Saturday is being backed ante post .........

 

18mm of rain overnight has changed the going to good, good-soft in places on the chase and hurdles tracks but has not been enough to save the cross-country race, which has been cancelled on safety grounds. A veterans handicap chase will replace it, but will be run at the start of the card to avoid any potential issues with low sun.

 

More rain forecast Friday afternoon / evening Nass, so I think it pretty much certain we'll be seeing Thistlecrack on Saturday