Jane Mangan’s William Hill blog: Cheltenham Festival Day Two Tips

William Hill ambassador Jane Mangan is back with her best bets for the second day of the Cheltenham Festival.

Cheltenham, Wednesday

A big field has been declared for the Turners Novices’ Hurdle (1:20pm), making it a bit of a tactical nightmare for some jockeys. Paul Townend has been jocked up on King Rasko Grey who I saw on the gallops this morning. He’s a very impressive, tall, strong individual who finished just behind Ballyfad and Talk The Talk at the Dublin Racing Festival. The trainer seems confident he can turn that around and improve, so he’s the one for me.

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The Brown Advisory (2:00pm) is a fabulous renewal, particularly with the inclusion of Romeo Coolio. I’d long been sweet on The Big Westerner, but I appreciate that the ground conditions don’t enhance her chances. She did run a very good race on good-to-soft ground in the Albert Bartlett when finishing second, where she looked an unlucky loser. Her form this year has been encouraging. Darragh O’Keeffe has abandoned ship, but she gets the services of Mike O’Connor, who has ridden her in her two starts this year. I think she is a mare with extreme talent, and she can conquer the geldings.

In the BetMGM Cup (2:40pm), I like the chance of a JP McManus runner, but maybe not the one many are thinking of. Puturhandstogether won the Fred Winter off a mark of 130 and subsequently disappointed in the Galway Hurdle but has since won the Irish Cesarewitch on the Flat. The drying ground will pay into his favour, and he has the tactical speed to negotiate a competitive handicap like this. Joseph O’Brien does have a small but select jumping string, but I think he could hold a few aces in the pack.

The Cross Country Chase (3:20pm) looks like it will be run on good ground, which I think will be a negative for Stumptown, despite jockey Keith Donoghue’s record over the banks. He’s won five times in the last seven renewals, but I think his stablemate could be his undoing. He’ll have to give over a stone away to Final Orders, who will relish the better going, with Conor Stone-Walsh taking a valuable three pounds off too. I thought his performance at the track in December was notable, and he didn’t disgrace himself in January on unsuitable ground. He is the biggest danger to his stablemate in what looks a decent renewal.

It’s no surprise to see Majborough odds-on for the Champion Chase (4:00pm) after his performance at the Dublin Racing Festival, but it’s worth noting that seven odds-on favourites have been beaten in the last 10 runnings of the race. However, he looks, on all known form, unopposable. It’s probably worth taking an each-way approach with Quilixios, who came down at the last when running so well in this race last year. Henry de Bromhead has a very strong record in the race, winning four of the last 15 renewals. Majborough to win, but my way of approaching the race is to have an each-way bet on Quilixios.

Dan Skelton is a bit of a handicap king, especially at the Cheltenham Festival, and I’m sticking with one of his runners in the Grand Annual (4:40pm), Be Aware. He has a good second over course and distance back in November to July Flower, and he then finished second in a pair of good graded races. Reverting to a handicap off a mark of 146, he looks quite appealing, and he’s the one for me.

Willie Mullins has an exemplary record in the Champion Bumper (5:20pm), boasting 14 total wins in the race, with five of the last six renewals going back to Closutton. The Irish are dominant in this sphere, winning 23 of the last 33 Champion Bumpers. This time around, I’m siding with Noel Meade. He’s one of the best bumper trainers in the country, and I think he may have the winner in The Mourne Rambler. He’s booked Colin Keane and looks of extreme interest given how well he won at Leopardstown when beating a very promising horse for Martin Brassil on his only start for the yard. He finished second in a point-to-point, which is experience that should stand him in good stead in this kind of contest. He comes from top connections, and I think he will run a big race in the finale.