Cheltenham Gold Cup Tips – Galopin Des Champs vs The Field

Check out all our Cheltenham Gold Cup tips as our panel of horse racing experts give their pick for the Cheltenham Festival’s flagship race.

Cheltenham Gold Cup Tips

The BoyleSports Preview Night panel have weighed up the contenders to Galopin des Champs, who is the current 6/4 favourite to land Willie Mullins a third victory in the Festival’s blue riband.

Cheltenham Gold Cup NAPs

David Casey – Galopin Des Champs @ 6/4 with BoyleSports

Denis O’Regan – Noble Yeats EW @ 7/1 with BoyleSports

Peter Fahey – Galopin Des Champs @ 6/4 with BoyleSports

Robbie Power – Galopin Des Champs @ 6/4 & Minella Indo EW @ 20/1 with BoyleSports

Cheltenham Gold Cup Preview

David Casey

“Galopin Des Champs is the best horse in the race. He has a lot of class, pace, stamina, he jumps very well and he’ll improve from his last run. The danger is last year’s winner A Plus Tard, but he’s coming off a bad run.”

Denis O’Regan

“It’s hard to look away from the top two in the betting. The Gold Cup last year had an effect on A Plus Tard, it’s hard to keep coming back and he’s been producing at the top level for some time. 

“I’d give Noble Yeats a chance. He ran a nice race in the Cotswold Chase, he didn’t get into a battle and it was a nice run going into a Gold Cup. He won one of the best Grand Nationals for a few years. He stays going and there are question marks over stamina for others like Conflated. He is a good solid each-way chance behind Galopin Des Champs and I think Minella Indo will be placed again.” 

Peter Fahey

“It’s Galopin Des Champs for me. He was very good at Leopardstown, he stayed at it really well. There is no question over stamina and I think he’s rock solid for it.” 

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Robbie Power

“A Plus Tard is in very good form at home, everyone is happy with him. He schooled well last week, Rachael Blackmore was bouncing when she got off him. His form round Cheltenham is top class and he’s got a good chance again, but Galopin Des Champs is a major stumbling block. 

“It’s unusual to see a horse who was so forward-going last year and so exuberant over fences to the one now who is half behind the bridle, which is what you want from a Gold Cup horse. There were times watching at the Dublin Racing Festival when you were wondering how well Paul was going, but after the second last he took off and he was nearly halfway down the back straight before he got him pulled up.

He’s going to be very hard to beat, but so will A Plus Tard if he is back to his best. That’s an ‘if’ for everyone, he seems good at home but we won’t know until he gets there.

“We knew at Haydock from the off he wasn’t going. His bloods came back wrong, he took an allergic reaction to something. I’d be amazed if anything outside A Plus Tard and Galopin Des Champs won, but Minella Indo is too big a price.

He’s been first and second in the last two Gold Cups, I think he’ll be in the top three again. He’s a different horse when he arrives over at Cheltenham and he’s going into the race with better preparation than last year.”

Cheltenham Gold Cup Favourites

Galopin Des Champs – Cheltenham Gold Cup Favourite 

Last time out Galopin Des Champs won on the 4th of February over a 3-mile trip in Leopardstown by a comfortable 8 lengths. That made 3 wins on the spin for the W-P Mullins trained 7-year-old gelding, with the horse’s last defeat interestingly coming during the 2022 Cheltenham Festival in the Turners Novices’ Chase (Grade 1).

On that occasion the Mullins trained horse was 2 out and 12 lengths ahead when it fell at the last. Our horse racing experts are backing Galopin Des Champs to recover from last year’s loss by winning the 2023 Cheltenham Gold Cup this March. You can back Galopin Des Champs to be Cheltenham Gold Cup champion at 6/4 odds.

Bravemansgame – Gold Cup Second Favourite   

The last time we saw Bravemansgame was when he won on the 26th of December 2022, over a 3-mile trip in Kempton by an impressive 14 lengths. That made it 2 wins on the spin for the Paul Nicholls trained 8-year-old gelding. This horse’s last defeat came on the 8th of April 2022 at Aintree in the Betway Mildmay Novices’ Chase (Grade 1) when he came last in a 4-horse-field, a massive 30 lengths from the winner Ahoy Senor.

Despite the vet reporting no abnormalities after that defeat at Aintree he was subsequently given a 204-day break before returning and wining on the 29th of October 2022, in Wetherby. If you fancy Bravemansgame to cross the finish line first in the 2023 Cheltenham Gold Cup then you can find odds of 13/2.

A Plus Tard

His most recent outing came on the 19th of November 2022 at Haydock. The De Bromhead trained horse raced in last but in touch with the leaders, pecked on landing 14th and was pulled up before 3 out. Prior to this race, the horses last victory came during the 2022 Cheltenham Festival in the Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup Chase (Grade 1) beating Minella Indo by 15 lengths.

Trainer Henry De Bromhead will be hoping that Cheltenham can prove the good luck charm for the 9-year-old gelding yet again. A Plus Tard is rated as a 7/1 chance to win the 2023 Cheltenham Gold Cup.

Noble Yeats

Last time out for Noble Yeats was on the 28th of January at Cheltenham Festival Trials day in the Cotwsold Chase. On that occasion he came third out of six runners over the 3m1½f trip. The eventual winner Ahoy Senor beat him to the finish line by 2.5 lengths.

The horse’s last victory came on the 3rd of December 2022 running over the 3-mile 1 furlong trip in Aintree when he beat a 6-horse-field by 3.25 lengths. Trainer Emmet Mullins will be hoping that he can get one over on his uncle – a certain W-P Mullins! You can back Noble Yeats at 7/1 odds to be the 2023 Cheltenham Gold Cup champion.

Stattler

Stattler’s most recent outing came on the 4th of February 2023 at Leopardstown. That day he came 2nd to Cheltenham Gold Cup favourite Galopin Des Champs with 8 lengths separating the pair. This was Stattler’s second 2nd place finish in-a-row having also coming second to Minella Indo on the 1st of January in Tramore over a 2-mile 6-furlong trip.

The horse’s last victory came during the 2022 Cheltenham Festival in the National Hunt Challenge Cup Amateur Jockeys’ Novices’ Chase (Grade 2) winning the six-horse-field by 8 lengths.  The 8-year-old gelding is another part of the W-P Mullins team. Stattler has been installed as an 8/1 shot in the Cheltenham Gold Cup betting market.

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