St Patrick’s Thursday 18th March 2027 – Cheltenham Festival Day Three

Race 1 - Ryanair Mares' Novices' Hurdle - 13:20

The Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle is the second youngest race at the Festival, introduced as it was in 2016 in order to ensure there were seven races on all four days. It is open to horses aged four and over with a weight of ten stone eight pounds.

Horses aged five or over can be eleven stone four pounds and there are penalties in place for different horses in this Grade Two race. This race has a big field, the max is 22 and last year 22 ran.

Run over two miles and one-hundred and seventy-nine yards (2m, 179y) and including eight jumps, it hasn’t been going long enough to establish any kind of notable record.

That said, the first two races were won by Ruby Walsh and all of the first five race winners were trained by Willie Mullins, so that’s always worth bearing in mind when it comes to looking at the field and deciding who to bet on.  He hasn't won it since 2020, though.

Along with Ruby, Rachael Blackmore is the only other jockey to win this race more than once and she also has two wins.  It is not common to see female jockeys on the record lists so good on her, she deserves it.  Both of those winners were on Henry de Bromhead trained horses, he is the only other trainer with more than one win in this race.

Race 2 - Novices' Limited Handicap Chase - 14:00

This was one of the youngest races of the entire Festival week and was first run back in 2011. When it first started it was a Grade Two race but was upgraded by the British Horseracing Board in 2014 to Grade One.  For 2025, however, the BHA made the decision to downgrade this race again to Grade 2 novices' limited handicap chase.

The race has been sponsored throughout its history, though is officially titled the Golden Miller Novices' Chase when you strip any sponsorship away.

It is the second race of the Festival to be run on the New Course, as all races on the Thursday and the Friday are. It now lasts for two miles, four furlongs and one-hundred and twenty-seven yards (2m, 4f, 127y), slightly longer than the previous version that was 2m, 3f, 168y.  The race now features 17 fences, one more than previously.  Of course the race is now also a handicap but that also means a much bigger field (which was the point) and more for punters to watch, last year 18 ran.  The maximum field is 20.

Open to horses aged five and over, the weight restriction is eleven stone ten pounds, or eleven stone twelve pounds for horses over six years of age, with a seven pound allowance for mares. The left-handed race, which is for novices chasers, has been won the most times by Ruby Walsh; he picked up three wins in a row from 2015 to 2017. Those wins were all under the trainer Willie Mullins, who also won in 2012 to ensure he’s the most successful trainer with four victories.  Rachael Blackmore became the first female jockey to win the race on Henry de Bromhead trained Bob Olinger in 2022.

Race 3 - Close Brothers Mares' Hurdle - 14:40

The Mares’ Hurdle is one of the youngest races at the Cheltenham Festival, having only been inaugurated back in 2008. That year it was held on the final day of the meeting but it was moved to Day One in 2009.  In 2025 the race was moved from Champion Day to St Patrick's Thursday in a move to shake up the meeting and add more to the Thursday card.  As a result the race is now run on the New course rather than the Old Course.

Run over two miles, four furlongs and fifty-six yards (2m, 4f, 56y), the Grade 1 race is open to four year olds and up. Weight-wise you’re looking at ten stone seven pounds for four year olds and eleven stone five pounds for horses over five.

If you’ve ever heard the expression 'a one horse race' then it could easily have come from this one: From 2009 to to 2014 it was one by just one horse named Quevega. Featuring ten hurdles, this started life as a Grade 2 race saw it move to Grade 1 in 2015.  The only other horses to win the race more than once were Honeysuckle (2020 and 2023) for Henry de Bromhead and Lossiemouth in 2024 and 2025, for Willie Mullins.  Could Lossiemouth become the next Quevega?  Maybe, although she has moved on to bigger things, notably winning the Champion Hurdle in 2026.

The most successful jockey in the event is Ruby Walsh, who rode Quevega all six times and then won again in 2016 and 2018 to give him eight wins. Willie Mullins trained Quevega and has also trained five other winning horses, making him the most successful trainer in the race with eleven victories - and there have only been 19 races since it started!

Due to Quevega, Lossiemouth and others it means the favourite has won this race an astonishing 63% of the time since it started with average winner odds of ~9/2.  It is certainly not a race to be looking for long odds outsiders in judging by its history.

Race 4 - The Stayers' Hurdle - 15:20

The first big race of Day Three, with many believing it to be the day’s feature race and significantly more important than the Ryanair Chase. That’s because this is the leading long-distance race on the National Hunt calendar and is open to horses aged four and over.  There is argument with that, though, emphasised by the fact this race was switched to precede the Ryanair in 2o25, suggesting perhaps that the level of importance has shifted?  Either way this is still a superb race and personally I think one of the best of the whole meeting.

The horses have to run for two miles, seven furlongs and two-hundred and thirteen yards (2m, 7f, 213y) and jump twelve hurdles and can weigh ten stone and nine pound if they’re four or eleven stone ten pounds if they’re five or older, with an allowance of seven pounds for both fillies and mares.  The max field is 24 but usually you get around half of that, 10 ran last time.

First run back in 1912 as the Stayers Selling Hurdle, the race has had numerous different sponsors ever since it was sponsored by Lloyds Banks in 1972 when its name changed to what it is now. Previously held on a Tuesday or a Wednesday, the Grade 1 race was moved to the Thursday in 1993 and has remained there ever since. Won most often by Ruby Walsh with his five victories, Paul Nicholls’ four wins make him the most successful trainer.

This race is good for favourites (35% since 2000) but it also has decent average offs (19/2) which shows that it is either won by the favourite or you get a longer odds winner, e.g. 2024 winner was priced at 5/4, 2023 and 2026 winners were priced at 33/1.

Race 5 - Ryanair Chase - 16:00

Also known as the Festival Trophy as well as by its sponsored name of the Ryanair Chase, this was one of numerous races added to the Cheltenham Festival calendar back when it moved from a three day event to having four days and is considered to be one of two big races on Day Three. That was in 2005 and at the time this was a Grade 2 race, moving to Grade 1 three years later.

The left-handed race is run over two miles, four furlongs and one-hundred and twenty-seven yards (2m, 4f, 127y), with seventeen fences needing to be overcome before the final straight.

The race is for horses aged five and older, weighing eleven stone eight pounds or eleven stone ten pounds if they’re six or over, with mares getting a seven pound allowance. The Ryanair Chase is seen as a good starting point for horses hoping to compete in the Gold Cup in the future, so keep an eye on the winners. Ruby Walsh has won this race more than any other jockey with four victories, whilst Paul Nicholls and Willie Mullins are the leading trainers having won it three times and six times, respectively.

Bryony Frost made history in 2019 winning the race on the back of Frodon to become the first female jockey to ride a grade one winner at the Cheltenham Festival.  At just 23 years old when she did so it could hopefully be the first of many for her.  Rachael Blackmore also won the race in 2021, she managed that on Allaho who went on to defend his crown in 2022 ridden by Paul Townend.  Allaho and Albertas Run are the only horses to win the race more than once.

Blackmore won again in 2023 with Festival favourite Envoi Allen to become the first female jockey to win the race more than once, a feat she has achieved in a few Cheltenham races.

Race 6 - Pertemps Final Handicap Hurdle - 16:40

This is a Premier Handicap race (elevated from Listed in 2018 and converted from Grade 3 in 2022), but don’t let that fool you into thinking that the quality won’t be just as high as all of the others; horses need to qualify to be able to take part in it, after all.

Open to horses aged five or older, it is, as the name suggests, a handicap race so the weights are decided by the handicappers. It features twelve jumps over two miles seven furlongs and two-hundred and thirteen yards (2m, 7f, 213y) and is a very competitive undertaking - when it comes to betting it’s worth bearing in mind that it’s rarely won by the favourite (just 15% of the time since 2000).  The average winner odds for this race is high at just over 16/1, indeed the past two of the past three winners have come home at 25/1.

The Handicap Hurdle was first introduced back in 1974 when it replaced a race known as the George Duller Handicap Hurdle. Despite running for all of that time, the sheer competitiveness of it means that there aren’t any runaway leaders when it comes to the success of either the jockeys who have raced in it or the trainers who put all of their efforts into getting the horses ready. The most successful jockeys are Davy Russell, Barry Geraghty and Jim Wilson, with three wins each, and the trainer who has won it the most times is Jonjo O’Neill with four.

This is another big field race to enjoy and look for an each-way with some bookies paying up to 6 places.  The maximum field is 24 and last year it was a full house.

Race 7 - Fulke Walwyn Kim Muir Challenge Cup - 17:20

St. Patrick’s Day is brought to a close by the Kim Muir Challenge Cup. It was introduced to Cheltenham in 1946 by a lady named Mrs. Evan Williams and dedicated to the memory of her brother, Kim Muir, who lost his life in the Second World War. Back then it was known as the Kim Muir Amateur Riders' Steeplechase, and though the name might have changed the theme of the race hasn’t.

It is open to amateur riders on horses aged five years of age and older. The name of Fulke Walwyn was added to the race’s title back in 1991 in order to honour the trainer of the same name, who won forty races at the Festival and 211 at Cheltenham in general.

Owing to the race’s amateur and ungraded nature, this is seen as an excellent way for younger jockeys to get a taste of Cheltenham life. It is a handicap race, so there’s no weight limit and the horses are laid with different weights by the handicappers in order to ensure that everyone goes off fairly. It’s three miles, two furlongs and seventy yards in length (3m, 2f, 70y), so you can see where the 'challenge' part of the title comes from. The horses must jump twenty one fences and Jamie Codd is the most successful jockey at getting them to do it to date with is four wins. Fred Rimell is the most successful trainer, having seen his horse be victorious on four occasions.

This is always a big field, there are 24 max and it is often pretty close to that, 23 running last time.  A great way to end the day and hopefully find some each-way value with some betting sites offering 6 places.