Cheltenham - Day One
Cheltenham 2:10 - Royal Caviar (without Altior)
Betting without the seemingly unimpeachable Altior isn’t simply a case of finding the second best horse as that one could pay for mixing it with the favourite too early. It’s easy to see the front-running Charbel falling into that trap and Royal Caviar looks a better bet as he’s likely to be ridden with more restraint. In any case, he’s officially rated the second best in the field and his jumping had been notably good prior to a falling when about to win the Irish Arkle last time.
Cheltenham 2:50 - Singlefarmpayment
In a race populated with exposed and/or out-of-form runners, Singlefarmpayment has a lot to recommend him. A beneficiary of a summer stable switch to Tom George, a trainer due some positive luck regression at this meeting after a run of placed horses without a winner, his form is both good on the clock and working out well. He possesses excellent course form and being brought down last time could be a blessing in disguise as it means his mark of 142 has been left untouched.
Cheltenham 4:50 - A Genie in Abottle
As ever, there will be a broad spectrum of jockey ability in the National Hunt Chase with Jamie Codd about the pick. His strong style should match up well with A Genie In Abottle who needs stoking along and has form that puts him on the cusp of the Irish graded novices. A few of these are of a similar level but none have his scope to improve massively for the step up to four miles.
Tony Keenan writes a weekly Irish racing tipping column for Betfair as well as data-driven racing analysis on Geegeez.co.uk. He will be a guest tipster for The Irish Times during the Cheltenham Festival.
