The Showcase differs from most events held at Cheltenham Racecourse on account of the fact that it doesn’t feature a race called the Gold Cup. Don’t think that that means there are no races worth watching, however, as there are plenty of different ones across Day One alone that will capture your imagination. You can always tell when a meeting is worthy of attention because of the fact that sponsors are keen to get involved and on that front the Showcase doesn’t disappoint, with almost every race sponsored by a well-known company.
Not that punters are all that bothered which races have been sponsored and which ones haven’t, of course. The key thing that most people will want to know is what aged horses the races are for, if there are any rules that you need to look out for and so on. On this page we’ll give you as much information as we can, as well as the timings for the various races as they were at the 2018 version of the event.
Showcase Friday Race Card
If you’ve read any of our other pages looking at the events that take place at Cheltenham Racecourse then you’ll know that we always add in the disclaimer that all race schedules are subject to change.
Typically speaking, the races get underway at 2pm and the last one goes off at 5.30pm, but anything from weather to sheer popularity of the occasion can mean that that doesn’t happen as planned. Even so, this is the rough look at how Day One should pan out if all goes according to plan:
Race 1 - Ballymore Novices Hurdle - 14:00
The first race of the day is this chase for novices that takes place over two miles and five furlongs (2m, 5f). It’s for horses aged four and over and there are ten hurdles that they must negotiate before they’ll be running down the final stretch.
Run left-handed on the Old Course at Cheltenham, this race shares a name with the same one run during the Festival and can tell you a lot about that offering.
2019 Winners
- Horse - Champagne Well
- Jockey - Paddy Brennan
- Trainer - Fergal O'Brien
- Overall Prize Money - £20,000
- For The Winner - £12,512
Race 2 - Novices' Chase - 14:35
The second race of the day is also for novices’, though this one is a chase and it takes place over a shorter stretch of distance at one mile, seven furlongs and one hundred and ninety-nine yards (1m, 7f, 199y).
As with race one it’s for four-year-olds and over but usually boasts a slightly smaller field. The distance might be shorter but there are more obstacles to get over, with thirteen fences standing in the way of the horses and the finishing line.
2019 Winners
- Horse - Al Dancer
- Jockey - Sam Twiston-Davies
- Trainer - Nigel Twiston-Davies
- Overall Prize Money - £25,000
- For The Winner - £15,640
Race 3 - Handicap Hurdle - 15:10
It’s back to the world of hurdles for race three, with this one being a handicap offering. As a result, the field is normally one of the largest in the day and seventeen horses took place in it in 2019.
It is run over the same two miles and five furlongs (2m, 5f) as race one, also presenting the jockeys with ten hurdles that they’ll need to persuade their charges to jump. It’s for three-year-olds and over with a rating of between 0 and 140.
2019 Winners
- Horse - Duke Street
- Jockey - Cillin Leonard
- Trainer - Dr Richard Newland
- Overall Prize Money - £16,000
- For The Winner - £10,007
Race 4 - Novices' Chase - 15:45
It’s novice chase number two of the day when race four gets underway, with this one being open to horses aged five and over. Run on the old course over a distance of three miles and eighty yards (3m, 80y), there are nineteen fences that the horses will need to jump during the course of the race.
Don’t be surprised if there’s a slightly smaller field for this one than you might have seen during the day’s other races.
2019 Winners
- Horse - Mulcahys Hill
- Jockey - A P Heskin
- Trainer - Warren Greatrex
- Overall Prize Money - £25,000
- For The Winner - £15,640
Race 5 - Maiden Hurdle - 16:20
There are three races in a row on Day One that are for those of you that have as much interest in the future as the present, with the first being the Maiden Hurdle.
This is open to horses aged four and over that haven’t won a race before and fancy their chances of making it over the eight hurdles in place around the two miles, eighty-seven yards (2m, 87y) of course that the race takes place on.
2019 Winners
- Horse - Heaven Help Us
- Jockey - Danny Mullins
- Trainer - Paul Hennessy
- Overall Prize Money - £15,000
- For The Winner - £9,384
Race 6 - Amateur Riders' Handicap Chase - 16:55
This is the second race for those of you that want to make notes for the future, given that it’s one for amateur riders who will have to contend with both the course and the fact that it’s a handicap race.
The horses can be aged four and over and have a rating of between 0 and 125, with the weight they’ll need to carry adjusted accordingly. It’s run over three miles and one furlong (3m, 1f) and there are twenty fences for the young charges to negotiate. It’s usual for this race to have a reasonably large field.
2019 Winners
- Horse - Petite Power
- Jockey - Mr Liam Harrison
- Trainer - Fergal O'Brien
- Overall Prize Money - £15,000
- For The Winner - £9,608
Race 7 - Conditional Jockeys' Handicap Hurdle - 17:30
The first day of the Showcase comes to a close with this Conditional Jockeys' Handicap Hurdle, meaning that it’s open to jockeys under the age of twenty-six that have won fewer than seventy-five races under rules.
The fact that’s also a handicap race means that the field really is seen as being quite even by most, with eight hurdles for the field to jump and a distance of two miles and eighty-seven yeards (2m, 87y) to run. The horses can be three or older with a rating of between 0 and 140 and this race acts as a qualifier for the Challenger Two Mile Series.
2019 Winners
- Horse - Benny's Bridge
- Jockey - Connor Brace
- Trainer - Fergal O'Brien
- Overall Prize Money - £16,000
- For The Winner - £9,747
What To Expect On Showcase Friday
As we wrote on the main page, the Cheltenham Festival will always be the event in the jump racing calendar that earns the most attention in the Gloucestershire region, but in terms of excited anticipation there’s an argument that the Showcase runs it a close second. This is a chance for the jockeys, trainers, owners and, of course, the horses themselves to inspect the course before the season ahead gets truly into the swing of things. For that reason you’ll find that the Prestbury Park course is visited more by true racing enthusiasts over the two days rather than the celebrities, hangers-on and Johnny-come-latelies that tend to be found wandering around the venue in March.
That being said, if there’s likely to be people turning up just to get a sense of what the whole thing’s about then it’s more likely to be on the Friday than the Saturday. Regardless, this is an event for serious racing enthusiasts who know that it’s an opportunity to keep an eye out for some horses to see how they’re likely to do in the season ahead. Of course, even racing enthusiasts like to have a shop and a bite to eat, so there’ll be plenty of places to do just that during the course of two days. In 2018, for example, racegoers could attend the The SoGlos Showcase Zone for the first time, which was a collection of some of Gloucester’s best craft food and drink producers who were given stalls within The Centaur.
In terms of the weather, you’re best off having a look at what the forecast is saying before you leave to head to the racecourse. We’ve known mid-Octobers to be delightfully mild and even sunny one day then chucking it down and freezing the next. If there’s one thing you can predict about the British weather then it’s that it is entirely unpredictable! You know yourself better than we do, though, so you’ll be best off packing accordingly. The good news is that both the racecourse itself and the surrounding areas of it will be looking fresh and smart, almost certainly having been updated during the summer months and given a pleasant spring clean.
Final Thoughts
Day One of the Showcase presents you with a number of exciting races, with the final three being the ones to really keep an eye on in terms of learning about the horses and jockeys that might well have a breakout season.