Cheltenham Festival day one – Henderson holding Champion aces?

PA Sport Reporters
March 10, 2020 4:45 am

Seven Barrows trainer has four chances in opening-day highlight.

Nothing quite matches the roar as the tapes go up for the first race of the Cheltenham Festival.

The Olympics of jumps racing produces thrills and spills of epic proportions – and this year’s fixture has any number of mouthwatering clashes to savour.

The Unibet Champion Hurdle is the feature event this afternoon, with Epatante seemingly having put a minor health scare behind her as she bids to give trainer Nicky Henderson an incredible eighth win in the Grade One event.

However, her only slip came at this meeting last year, so there are questions for the favourite to answer in what looks the most open renewal of the two-mile championship for quite some time.

The Benie Des Dieux and Honeysuckle face-off in the Close Brothers Mares’ Hurdle has rightly assumed the role of chief supporting contest, while the opening Sky Bet Supreme Novices’ Hurdle is invariably won by a top-class performer.

Cheltenham comes but once a year, so sit back and enjoy!

Henderson in the hunt

Epatante headlines a four-strong squad for Nicky Henderson in the Champion Hurdle, with last year’s Triumph Hurdle hero Pentland Hills another leading hope for the Seven Barrows team, as he tries to follow in the hoofprints of Katchit, who won the Triumph in 2007 before adding the Champion a year later.

Girl Power

The Mares’ Hurdle has thrown up a real clash of the titans, as Benie Des Dieux and Honeysuckle go head-to-head. The first-named won the race in 2018 for Willie Mullins, but crashed out at the last with the race at her mercy last year, while Henry de Bromhead’s unbeaten Honeysuckle is a new and very worthy adversary in what promises to be a real humdinger.

Arkle rematch

Just three-quarters of a length separated Notebook and Cash Back in the Irish Arkle, so who will come out on top this time? Throw in Grade One winners Esprit Du Large, Brewin’upastorm and Fakir D’Oudairies and it looks a race to savour for the two-mile novice crown.

Donnelly decider

Owner Joe Donnelly is key to the Supreme as he owns both ante-post favourites in the shape of wide-margin Grade One winner Asterion Forlonge (Mullins) and Shishkin (Henderson), who has long been touted as a top prospect. It could be another big moment for Donnelly, with defending Gold Cup champion Al Boum Photo to come later in the week.

Carefully does it

Last year’s National Hunt Chase provided one of the most controversial moments of the meeting, with just four horses finishing in a real war of attrition that prompted an update to the race conditions and a shorter distance to reflect welfare concerns. Carefully Selected is the hot favourite for Willie and Patrick Mullins this time around.