The Cheltenham New Year’s Day meeting survived the very windy conditions on course to deliver a meeting that certainly lived up to the billing.
With some good performances on course and plenty of clues for the future, there was a lot for punters to take from the day, whether you managed to land any winning bets or not.
Springwell Bay the Big Eyecatcher
I think the performance of the day goes to Springwell Bay, and not only that, but it was a performance that gave us a couple of big clues for the future.
A nine-length success for Springwell Bay in the big race of the race will see him rise plenty in the weights from his mark of 145. Up into the 150s, we may not see him in a handicap again this season, though given his best form is at two and a half miles, he may skip the Cheltenham Festival all together and head to Aintree afterwards.
Impressive win at @CheltenhamRaces for Springwell Bay for @JJONeillJnr & @oneill_racing
Marble Sands second, as advised each way by @IanCheltEx in our New Years Day Meeting Preview Videopic.twitter.com/X0co3WYjxs
— The Cheltenham Exchange (@Cheltenham_Ex) January 1, 2025
Wherever he goes next, I’m excited to see him, and novice-graded company is where I expect he will end up, assuming the handicapper has his say on this win.
For me, though, the big positive to take out of this race is a horse that didn’t run here, Jango Baie. He made a massive impression when winning at Cheltenham on chase debut, his only run so far this season. The horse behind him that day? Springwell Bay, who held chasing experience, too, making the Jango Baie performance even better.
I’m not sure where he goes next, but beating Springwell Bay by six and a half lengths and doing it pushed out in very comfortable fashion looks to be an even bigger run now than it did at the time.
Kalif Du Berlais Well Ahead of Handicapper
The opening contest may have only seen three runners go to post, and it’s always tough to get to grips with small field races, but Kalif Du Berlais is ahead of the handicapper for sure.
A nine-and-a-half length winner on the day, both Vincenzo and Tedley are decent horses, so this was a really good performance for me. Rated 141, he’ll be close to 150 when the handicapper has had his say, so they could go for a top handicap or into graded company next, there’s plenty of options open for him, including the Arkle.
Chantry House and Lucky Place Continue Strong Henderson Form
The final mention goes to Nicky Henderson. His team was in strong form over the Christmas period, and this continued here.
A double on the day began with Chantry House taking the long-distance handicap chase. An infrequent winner over hurdles, probably best described as a ‘nearly’ horse, but over fences, he’s the opposite.
Now 11, he’s won seven of 12 chase starts and took this nicely, coming away from the field in style to record a six-and-a-half-length win.
Lucky Place was the second Henderson winner, taking the Relkeel Hurdle by just three-quarters of a length. Pushed hard by Gowel Road and Golden Ace, he managed to hold them off and landed his second Grade Two success from two starts this season.
While he may not entirely be top level and runs at the intermediate distance of 2m4f, if he’s in a similar race next time, he’s certainly worth keeping on the right side of.