Cheltenham Gold Cup

About the Cheltenham Gold Cup

The Cheltenham Gold Cup is the most prestigious Grade 1 race in National Hunt racing. Run over a distance of 3 miles 2½ furlongs, it serves as the championship race for middle distance steeplechasers in the United Kingdom. Entry to the race is open to 5-year-old and above racehorses and 22 fences are jumped on the way to the finishing post.

The Cheltenham Gold Cup is one of a handful of thoroughbred races in England that attracts interest from the general public, with an estimated 1.4 million people tuning in to watch the race annually. This high level of public interest makes the race a major annual event for bookmakers, who can make huge profits or losses depending on the outcome of the race.

Betting on the Cheltenham Gold Cup

The Cheltenham Gold Cup has a tendency to attract at least two world class entries, which tends to resist the downward pressure the public would otherwise place on an outright favourite. In fact only one winner has run out priced under Evens since 1950. The net result of this is you can usually get good value on the favourite, who in recent years has approached a 40% strike rate in the race.

However, value is usually found in the horses priced high enough to pay out on each way bets if they place. The intensity of the race can easily expose the favourite to injury or a fall, which can open the Gold Cup up to the outsiders. Which in turn means that selecting the outsider most likely to place can be the most lucrative approach to Gold Cup betting.

Cheltenham Gold Cup Past Winners

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