Day Four Best Bets – Cheltenham 2018

Never mind the Grand Slam at Twickenham, the Irish trainers are handing out a hell of a beating at Cheltenham this week and there’s no reason to expect it to stop just yet.

Whiskey Friday
You’d be brave to discount any Willie Mullins or Gordon Elliott horse this week but one I’ve liked for a while in the County Hurdle is the Mullins trained Whiskey Sour.

There’s a lot going for the five-year-old who has been handed a lovely racing weight with stable companion Bleu Et Rouge topping the weights and even despite having top weight he can’t be discounted either as he ran a cracker behind Kalashnakov last time.

But it is a wide open race and Sansend can’t be overlooked while Paul Townend has opted to get off him to ride Merie Devie so there’s no doubt that Mullins has a strong hand in the race.

Whiskey Sour is by Jeremey so will surely like the ground, he’s won two valuable flat races during the summer and is certainly an improver. His Grade 1 success was certainly fortuitous as he benefited from the falls of stable companions Real Steel and Sharjah but in this sort of company…

he can be a big player and the 11/1 on offer looks quite inviting.

Henderson To Save Grace
Nicky Henderson was overtaken on Thursday by Willie Mullins as Cheltenham’s winning-most trainer but he can level it up again for a short time at least with Apple’s Shakira taking the Triumph Hurdle.

It has been an incredible week for Willie Mullins and it’s not over yet. There seems to be plenty of confidence behind Stormy Ireland and Saldier in the Triumph and that is without mentioning Grade 1 winner Mr Adjudicator but Apple’s Shakira is a filly that is bred to be a good one and you couldn’t argue with the manner of her successes at Cheltenham in the lead up to this Festival. She may have beaten weaker fields but…

she couldn’t have been more impressive and is backed to land the opener for JP McManus.

Recommended Bets:
Apple’s Shakira (13/8) – 1.30
Whiskey Sour (11/1) – 2.10

*Prices correct at time of publication.