Cheltenham Festival tips: Our experts' views on the day two action

Cheltenham - Wednesday racecards & FREE video form

• 13:30 Gallagher Novices' Hurdle (Grade 1)
• 14:10 Brown Advisory Novices' Chase (Grade 1)
• 14:50 Coral Cup Handicap Hurdle (Premier Handicap)
• 15:30 Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase (Grade 1)
• 16:10 Glenfarclas Chase (Cross Country Chase)
• 16:50 Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Challenge Cup Handicap Chase (Premier Handicap)
• 17:30 Weatherbys Champion Bumper (Standard Open NH Flat Race) (Grade 1)

Ballyburn is likely to be the cornerstone of day two for lots of punters - can you make a case against Willie Mullins' hot-pot in the Gallagher Novices' Hurdle?

Ben Linfoot: I think he’s rock solid, I really do. You can sometimes get the favourite beaten in this race if they’re a future three-mile chaser or something, that has looked good after coming in unbeaten after ploughing through the mud all winter. But Ballyburn has pace and class and he just looks too good for this field.

Tony McFadden: Not a strong one. Ballyburn is at least 10 lb clear of his rivals on Timeform's figures so already sets a lofty standard, and he has the potential to reach even greater heights. It's easy to excuse his defeat on his hurdling debut at Fairyhouse, where a talented rival in Firefox took advantage of his lack of sharpness, and he's been completely dominant in both starts since. He won a two-and-a-half-mile maiden hurdle so easily at Leopardstown on his penultimate start that it was assumed he was against a poor bunch, but the runner-up, Cleatus Poolaw, has since shown himself to be a useful sort and is now a leading contender for the Pertemps Final. Ballyburn then bolted up in a Grade 1 over two miles back at Leopardstown, doing so in such straightforward fashion that it was difficult to pick holes in a performance that was comfortably the best by novice hurdler this season. In the expectation that Slade Steel, the Leopardstown runner-up, will head to the Supreme to avoid another clash, the one to chase Ballyburn home could be Predators Gold who should appreciate this slightly shorter trip after pulling too hard when runner-up over further at the Dublin Racing Festival.

Matt Brocklebank: I was all for looking to take this horse on when it appeared he might run in the Sky Bet Supreme but I'm less inclined to get involved here as Ballyburn is made for the intermediate trip. He jumps well, travels, quickens, and we know he stays the distance too so he looks fairly bombproof, for all that his price is going to be seriously skinny.

Not a big field for the Brown Advisory by any stretch, but potentially a fantastic Anglo-Irish clash - how do you see it playing out?

Ben Linfoot: Yes, this is a quality race and loads of ways to attack it. I personally feel Fact To File is too short in the betting, for all that he's a very good horse, and his lack of experience, after just three bumpers and three small-field chases, could be his undoing. Stay Away Fay is a horse I like, but much like Gerri Colombe last year, the sharper Old Course could catch him out and he might just arrive too late on the scene. I want to take the big two on and Broadway Boy rates a good each-way bet to my eyes. He has excellent Cheltenham form (including on the Old Course over three miles), he had excuses at Warwick (poor scope, ulcers) and his handicap defeat of subsequent winner Threeunderthrufive from a mark of 146 is excellent form in this context. He can bowl along nicely under Sam Twiston-Davies and get them all at it.

Tony McFadden: Fact To File is a tough one to weigh up as the visual impression he has created has been fantastic, though there's not much substance to the form. I suspect he's going to prove too talented for his rivals here, but the way I'm looking to approach this race is by siding with Monty's Star in the 'without the favourite' market (assuming Grey Dawning runs in the Turners Novices' Chase, as the betting suggests is likely). Stay Away Fay is going to be favourite in that market but, while he ran well on the figures, I was a bit underwhelmed with his performance in the Cotswold Chase where his relative lack of speed was readily exposed. Monty's Star doesn't have such solid form credentials but really impressed with how strongly he travelled and how fluently he jumped when brushing aside Three Card Brag at Punchestown on New Year's Eve. We've yet to see the best of this half-brother to Monalee and I could see him taking a big step forward.

Matt Brocklebank: I always look forward to this as it can be a fairly great race and we've seen some dramatic editions in recent years, including Champ's miraculous win and Might Bite taking a late wander before getting back up to beat Whisper by a nose in 2017. Antepost backers of Fact To File will be hoping it's rather more straightforward this year but the Brits landed top spot 12 months ago and I like the inclusion of Broadway Boy to go alongside Stay Away Fay, and possibly Grey Dawning and/or Giovinco too. I'd never like to underestimate a Henry De Bromhead-trained novice chaser either and perhaps his Monty's Star is the one that's over-priced, but I'll have to see how the final field looks before having a bet.

El Fabiolo is one of the shortest prices of the entire week in the Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase. Are you for or against?

Ben Linfoot: He’s an exceptional two-miler and if Edwardstone goes off like he did at Newbury that will only play to El Fabiolo’s strengths. An A-star Jonbon would make things interesting, but I think El Fabiolo will have too many gears even in that scenario.

Tony McFadden: El Fabiolo has a top-class opponent to beat, so his task looks tougher than the one facing stablemate State Man the previous day, but I'd still expect him to pass the test. It shouldn't be forgotten that Jonbon came out on top when they met in a Grade 1 novice hurdle at Aintree a couple of seasons ago, but that was a very raw version of El Fabiolo and he comprehensively turned the tables in the Arkle last season. El Fabiolo went unbeaten through his novice chase campaign and has since extended his record over fences to six from six, offering little reason why the winning run should come to an end any time soon. As for a bet, I'll be looking for any markets without the big two, or match bets between Edwardstone and Captain Guinness. Edwardstone is the better horse of the pair and seemed right back to his best when bolting up in the Betfair Exchange Game Spirit Chase following a switch to front-running tactics, though racing with El Fabiolo and Jonbon from a long way out here could result in him losing the minor honours to a more patiently ridden rival like Captain Guinness.

Matt Brocklebank: I get the argument that he can clobber the odd fence which may get the pulse racing if you've had a bet at odds-on but this horse has never fallen or unseated. More importantly, he's never been beaten from six chase starts and this looks his crowning moment, with far more significant question marks over each and every rival he's expected to face.

Which race on the day appeals most from a betting perspective?

Ben Linfoot: The Coral Cup is one of my favourite races of the meeting and I have a shortlist as long as my arm. I wouldn’t say the Grand Annual usually appeals as a betting medium but Sophie Leech’s Madara will be popular after his DRF success and if the ground is genuinely riding soft on Wednesday he could follow up that win despite a 10lb rise.

Tony McFadden: Saint Roi, the 2020 County Hurdle winner, went chasing relatively late in the day but he took well to the new discipline last season, notably winning a Grade 1 at Leopardstown's Christmas Festival and finishing placed in the Arkle here and the Manifesto at Aintree. He's made no impact in graded company this season but shaped with encouragement when fourth in a Fairyhouse handicap on his penultimate start and a strongly-run race at two miles in the Grand Annual could be perfect for him. He's got topweight but a mark of 152 could be lenient based on his strong novice form.

Matt Brocklebank: I love how Coko Beach took to the banks at Punchestown and he suddenly looks a real player in the Glenfarclas Chase, but the handicaps is where I'll be investing most of my betting bank this week. Mighty Tom has to be in the mix in the Grand Annual after three eyecatching qualifying runs, including one at Cheltenham in November when clearly not suited to the small field and sedate gallop. The Coral Cup is the other big betting race on Wednesday and First Street looks on a dangerous mark, 3lb below his Gerry Feilden victory in November 2022. He's got some classy Festival form in the book too (second to State Man in the County) and just looks to be crying out for a return to this longer trip these days.

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