Race	Horse
1.20 Supreme Novices’ Hurdle	Talk The Talk
2.00 Arkle Challenge Trophy Novices’ Chase	Kargese
2.40 Fred Winter Juvenile Handicap Hurdle	Winston Junior
3.20 Ultima Handicap Chase	Stolen Silver
4.00 Champion Hurdle Challenge Trophy	Lossiemouth
4.40 Plate Handicap Chase	Grandeur D’ame
5.20 National Hunt Challenge Cup Novices’ Handicap Cup	Iceberg Theory

The Champion Hurdle is always the highlight of the first day of the Cheltenham Festival and this year is no exception. The New Lion was unbeaten going into last year’s Turners and duly registered an easy win. Last year’s winner Golden Ace has now won two big races in which fancied horses have fallen so there will always be the question “what if?”. In truth we can’t know, but she can only beat the horses that finish and some of the few horses to have done that in front of Golden Ace have been of the very highest class. Brighterdaysahead was there or thereabouts in both the Dawn Run Novices’ Hurdle of two years ago and the Champion Hurdle of last year. She has also beaten the favourite at the DRF in February, although that was on bad ground.

Lossiemouth had the option of going to the Mares’ Hurdle and connections should be applauded for their sportsmanship in coming to this race which should be more of a test for her, albeit one she has a good chance in. Lossiemouth won the Mares’ Hurdle both last year and the year previously. Ignoring the race where she fell, she wasn’t beaten in the whole of 2025 and whilst beaten by Brighterdaysahead in February, that was on poor ground after she showed she could beat the same rival over the same track and trip in the previous race. The ground at Cheltenham is set to resemble the earlier race standing Lossiemouth in good stead to become the Champion Hurdler.

Selections for the Supreme and the Arkle are winner of the DRF Novice Hurdle Talk The Talk and last year’s County Hurdle winner Kargese. Winston Junior in the Fred Winter and Iceberg Theory in the National Hunt Cup are two selections from the head of the market in the handicaps and there are each ways shouts in the remaining two races, Stolen Silver in the Ultima and Grandeur D’ame in the Plate.