| HISTORY | | | | Du Berlais, Neptune Collonges, Our Vic, Racing Demon, |
| The first recognised Cheltenham Festival took place at | | | | Tamarinbleu, Turko, 66 L'Antartique, Ollie Magern, Rule |
| Prestbury Park in 1902. The precursor to the Gold Cup, | | | | Supreme, State Of Play, Turpin Green, 100 BAR. |
| a four-mile steeplechase, for amateur riders was run in | | | | Each-way one-quarter the odds a place 1, 2, 3. |
| 1904. The inaugural Cheltenham Gold Cup was run in | | | | Other Bets Available |
| 1924, won by Red Splash. The winning prize money | | | | Kauto Star to Win 2008 & 2009 Gold Cups |
| was £700.The last twenty-five runnings have | | | | 6/1 with betdirect |
| seen eight 9-year-olds, seven 8-year-olds, five | | | | Denman to Win 2008, 2009 & 2010 Gold Cups |
| 10-year-olds and five 7-year-olds successful. Only | | | | 25/1 with betdirect |
| seven of the last twenty-five favourites have won: | | | | Kauto Star and Denman to finish 1st and 2nd |
| Kauto Star 2007, Best Mate 2003 / 2004, Master | | | | Priced at around 6/4 on several online betting sites. |
| Oats 1995, Desert Orchid 1989, Dawn Run in 1986, and | | | | Betting without Kauto Star and Denman |
| Bregawn in 1983. Four Irish-trained horses have won in | | | | Your selection to win or be third behind the above two. |
| the same period: War of Attrition 2006, Kicking King | | | | Obviously, prices will be much shorter than in the |
| 2005, Imperial Call 1996 and Dawn Run (the 1984 | | | | outright market. Current prices with Betfair (subject to |
| Champion Hurdle winner) in 1986. | | | | 5% commission): |
| THE CHELTENHAM GOLD CUP TODAY | | | | 4/1 Exotic Dancer, 11/2 Kicking King, 9/1 Star de |
| The Cheltenham Gold Cup is a Grade 1 National Hunt | | | | Mohaison, 15/1 Mossbank, 10/1 Snowy Morning, 12/1 |
| steeplechase run over a 3-mile, 2½ furlong | | | | Aces Four, 20/1 BAR. |
| course with 22 fences. The 2008 Cheltenham Gold | | | | Betting without Kauto Star, Denman & Exotic Dancer |
| Cup is scheduled for Friday 14th March, with prize | | | | Best Prices: 9/2 Kicking King, 11/2 Neptune Collonges, |
| money of £450k. There are two trainers who | | | | Star de Mohaison, 7/1 Knowhere, Snowy Morning, The |
| could, theoretically, equal or even better Michael | | | | Listener, 9/1 Mossbank, 10/1 Our Vic, 12/1 Another |
| Dickinson's feat of sending out the first five, as he did | | | | Promise, Halcon Genelardais, Tamarinbleu, 14/1 Aces |
| in 1983. Amongst the forty-two entries, both Paul | | | | Four, 16/1 Lantartique, Ollie Magern, Racing Demon, 20/1 |
| Nicholls and David Pipe have six entries each. There | | | | Celestial Gold, Mister Top Notch, Rule Supreme, Turko, |
| are some notable absentees from the entries. Irish | | | | 25/1 Monkerhostin, 33/1 BAR. |
| trainer, Michael Hourigan has entered his promising | | | | Match Bets |
| Mossbank, but not Beef Or Salmon, who has run in the | | | | One horse versus another, regardless of the race |
| last five Gold Cups. The 2005 winner, Kicking King, | | | | result. The match between Kauto Star and Denman is |
| exceeded the measured expectations of his trainer, | | | | likely to generate most interest. With betdirect, 4/6 |
| Tom Taaffe, and all but won on his recent comeback | | | | Kauto Star, 6/5 Denman. |
| run at Gowran Park, having been off the course for | | | | Conclusion |
| some 750 days. | | | | In a handicap race, such as the Grand National, the |
| CHELTENHAM GOLD CUP BETTING | | | | better horses concede weight to their lesser rivals, to |
| N.B. Prices quoted are as at 26th January 2008. | | | | allow them to compete on equal terms. The |
| Ante-Post Betting | | | | Cheltenham Gold Cup is a Grade 1 race, NOT a |
| The ante-post market has effectively been "killed" by | | | | handicap, with all the runners carrying 11st 10lb (with the |
| the strength of Kauto Star and Denman, both from the | | | | exception of mares, who receive a 5lb allowance). |
| yard of former jockey, Paul Nicholls. The current | | | | This means that, theoretically, the best horse should |
| ante-post prices on offer are: | | | | win. As a result, the prices of the fancied runners tend |
| 5/4 Kauto Star, 2/1 Denman, 10 Exotic Dancer, 16 | | | | to be shorter than in handicaps. However, there are a |
| Kicking King, 25/1 Mossbank, Star De Mohaison, 33 | | | | number of online markets available that exclude the |
| Aces Four, In Compliance, Snowy Morning, The | | | | market leaders, so it should be possible to have an |
| Listener, 50 Celestial Gold, Halcon Genelardais, Madison | | | | interest in the race, without investing vast sums. |