2023 County Handicap Hurdle Betting Tips
The build-up to the Cheltenham Gold Cup continues on Day Four of the Festival when we take in the County Hurdle and it’s a race which is jam-packed with quality horses competing over two miles and one furlong. It’s an encounter where many familiar runners are in action and some of them might be able to cheat the handicapper, having previously run well at the meeting.
Filey Bay certainly ticks plenty of boxes and that explains why the JP McManus-owned runner is trading as favourite. The seven-year-old is one of trainer Emmet Mullins’ best hopes of landing a winner at the meeting, with the horse having won consecutive races before a second-placed finish in the Betfair Hurdle at Newbury Racecourse.
Pembroke has the added advantage of having run well at Cheltenham this season. He’s also trained by Dan Skelton who knows what it takes to land a County Hurdle win at the Cheltenham Festival, with the horse finishing second in the Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle at Prestbury Park in late January and this runner could be poised to strike.
Gin Coco is another horse that has run well at Cheltenham Racecourse, with the Harry Fry-trained runner having finished second in the Greatwood Handicap Hurdle. That was over a similar distance and the horse could certainly be one for the shortlist, with the horse having also hit the frame when running in a handicap hurdle at the Punchestown Festival last year.
The 2022 County Hurdle betting odds are predictably wide open and the first port of call is to look at Top Bandit who is trading as short as 11/2 to land a victory. The top Cheltenham betting sites clearly respect a runner who has won on his past three outings and it appears that Gordon Elliott is going to send the six-year-old to this race on Day Four of the meeting.
Top Bandit won a Novice Hurdle at the beginning of December at Punchestown, with the horse obliging as the 5/6 betting favourite to win. Despite not jumping particularly fluently, the runner still had too much for the rest of the horses in the field, having previously won another novice hurdle at the same course after a maiden hurdle win at Cheltenham.
However, some Cheltenham betting tips will be for a horse at bigger Festival odds and Echoes in Rain is a leading contender. The horse hasn’t registered a win in three outings this National Hunt season, although the runner ran in esteemed company when finishing third in the Chanelle Pharma Irish Champion Hurdle.
The horse was sent off at betting odds of 25/1 and actually finished a credible seven lengths behind the legendary Honeysuckle, with the horse having also run in the Matheson Hurdle at Leopardstown Racecourse. It’s entirely possible that the runner will have a brilliant each-way chance against lesser rivals.
West Cork is available at similar Cheltenham Festival betting odds, with Dan Skelton bidding to saddle another County Hurdle betting tip and there is plenty to recommend an eight-year-old who has already got a Cheltenham win to his name this season. This is a horse that won the Unibet Greatwood Handicap Hurdle on 14 November 2021 despite the jockey dropping his whip.
Goven has never run at Cheltenham Racecourse, although Willie Mullins will be hoping for a big run from a six-year-old who was the 6/4 winner of a Maiden Hurdle on 12 February. However, the horse clattered a few hurdles when obliging at Naas and will need to cut out those mistakes this time around.
It’s notoriously difficult to find a winner in the Randox Health County Handicap Hurdle and we’ve seen plenty of big-priced winners over the past few years. Ch’tibello obliged at odds of 12/1 in 2019, while we saw a massive 33/1 winner in 2018 when Mohaayed claimed the spoils and that was a good outcome for the bookies.
We tend to get a big field for the County Hurdle which is a Grade 3 race and that is run over a distance of two miles and one furlong. Front View has caught the eye over the past few appearances, with the horse winning a Flat race at the Punchestown Festival last April.
In November, Envoi Allen was the unexpected winner of a Maiden Hurdle at Down Royal, although it was Front View who finished second to a potential superstar and Joseph O’Brien will feel confident that his horse can make an impressive showing.
The five-year-old then claimed a victory of his own when winning another Maiden Hurdle at Navan and we could see this horse trading short, especially with Barry Geraghty on board.
Thatsy is another horse to watch and this is another Gordon Elliott charge who has enjoyed plenty of racing this season although he’s not always been successful when making an appearance.
After winning a Maiden Hurdle over two miles and four furlongs, the six-year-old went up a grade and found life tougher going when finishing fourth place at Leopardstown before a ninth-placed finish at the same track in early February.
BET ONLY FOR FUN
