How to pick a winner at Cheltenham Festival: Templegate’s top tips to land a 33-1 stunner, just like he did
TEMPLEGATE will be your No 1 source of top tips for this week's Cheltenham Festival.
Every day our man Steve Mullen will deliver his picks - and the good news is he has form in unearthing a real gem!
Last year he found Belfast Banter in the County Hurdle at a whopping 33-1.
Can he do the same this time round? We'll find out as the week goes on.
But for now, read our man's top tips for finding a winner and check out his key trends, which could help you bash the bookies.
Templegate says…
First of all you have to trust your own judgement — ignore racecourse whispers and tips from a bloke whose cousin's brother valets cars in Cheltenham.
Far more 'good things' get turned over than win in my experience.
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Don’t forget, several yards in the same race can think their horse is a cert.
When I started everything was in paper form books and it did take a long time to weigh up a race properly.
But thanks to the internet, you can now watch a replay of any horse's runs which can help.
I try to picture how the race will be run as some tracks suit front-runners and others are best to come from off the pace.
Yet the bottom line is still the same - you have to put the hours in.
Look for a horse that is proven on the ground and will like the distance. Those two factors are still the most important.
If a horse needs it like a road it's unlikely to perform in the mud and you can rule out a lot of horses that way.
If you can find a horse that has won or gone close in the class, is proven on the ground and likes the distance then you have the makings of a decent bet.
Cheltenham Festival 2022 key trends
Horses in form
I know many horses go to Cheltenham on the back of a first or second last time out – most of the runners are in some kind of form.
But the amount of races that are won by a horse that was first or second last time is worth noting.
At the 2021 Festival 19 of the 28 races were won by a horse that was first or second last time. It was 20 in 2020 and 22 in 2019.
You can’t back them blind but it’s something to bear in mind.
Previous Festival form
Around 60 per cent of Festival races in the past 20 years have been won by a horse that has run at the meeting before.
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In 2021, 16 of the 28 races were won by a horse that had been at a previous Festival, wherever they finished.
Of those only six had won at a previous Festival – it seems just having been there before is what matters.
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