Six battles battles to savour at Cheltenham 2026
When it comes to Cheltenham, there’s nothing quite as compelling as a Festival duel. Pic: Andrew Matthews/PA
Ten years ago, a Nicky Henderson-trained horse brimming with potential took his first step towards greatness when outclassing future Cheltenham Festival victors Min and Buveur d’Air in a vintage renewal of the Supreme.
A decade on, Old Park Star will seek to emulate Altior by getting the better of a host of talented Irish horses, headed by talking horse Mighty Park and speedsters Talk The Talk and El Cairos.
Old Park Star is unbeaten in three starts for Henderson, the first of which took place at Kempton in November. That he was sent off at odds of 11-2 for that assignment suggests he wasn’t working the house down at Seven Barrows but he got the job down by three lengths and has gone from strength to strength since.
Twelve lengths was the winning margin at Cheltenham in November before Old Park Star was pitched into Grade Two company at Haydock in January where Hurricane Pat was expected to give him plenty to think about. However, he couldn’t land a blow, crossing the line 18 lengths behind the dominant winner.
Old Park Star will obviously face a considerably tougher challenge this week and, on proven form, the Joseph O’Brien-trained Talk The Talk, a horse who would be lining up as a dual Grade One winner had he not stumbled after the last at Leopardstown’s Christmas meeting, should be his biggest threat, Talk The Talk made amends on his return to the Foxrock venue when showing a potent turn of foot on heavy ground to reel in Ballyfad and King Rasko Grey at the Dublin Racing Festival.
Mighty Park has only run once under Rules, a runaway maiden hurdle win at Fairyhouse in January but Willie Mullins simply adores him, comparing him favourably to the great Faugheen and the fact he runs in this deep Supreme rather than the easier Turners contest could be a tip in itself.
Eleven of the last 14 renewals of the Arkle have been won by either Nicky Henderson or Willie Mullins, a remarkable record that’ll likely be enhanced this week.
Arguably the unluckiest loser at last year’s Festival when nailed on the line by 100-1 shot Poniros in the Triumph Hurdle, Lulamba has made a seamless transition to life over fences, winning each of his three starts in brilliant style.
The second of those wins came in Grade One company in Sandown before he was pitched in against his elders at Newbury last month. Both tests were passed with flying colours and he will line-up at Cheltenham having had a perfect build-up.
The same, however, cannot be said of Kopek Des Bordes. A brilliant winner of last year’s Supreme, he returns to Cheltenham having run just once this season, a smooth beginners’ chase win at Navan last November. A small setback ruled Kopek Des Bordes out of Leopardstown at Christmas and Mullins opted against running him in the Irish Arkle at the Dublin Racing Festival. The vibes since have been very positive and he certainly has the speed to put it up to Lulamba but it’s clearly a far from ideal Festival prep.
This year’s Champion Hurdle will have to go some to top the dramatic 2025 renewal for unexpected plot twists but if the build-up to Tuesday’s feature is anything to go by, it might just do so.
The Fighting Fifth Hurdle in November was essentially a repeat of last year’s Champion Hurdle as Golden Ace took advantage after the two market leaders fell. The implications of the fallout from that only became fully apparent late last month when it was announced that Constitution Hill, having fallen for a third time in four hurdle starts, would not be asked to jump an obstacle again.
However, the other faller from the Newcastle Grade One, The New Lion, will be at Cheltenham and looks sure to run a big race for the Skelton team.
Last year’s Turners Novices' Hurdle victor got back to winning at Festival Trials Day but whether he has speed required to win a Champion Hurdle remains an answered question.
Brighterdaysahead certainly isn’t lacking in the pace department and, in the absence of Constitution Hill, the horse on a redemption mission is the Gordon Elliott-trained mare.
She lined up in last year’s Champion Hurdle on the back of a breathtaking 30-length Grade One triumph the previous Christmas but it was obvious from a very early stage at Cheltenham that she wouldn’t be repeating that demolition job. She ultimately crossed the line a distant fourth, beaten just shy of 20 lengths. Elliott has since said a physical issue was subsequently found to explain her no-show.
Now she returns to Cheltenham seeking atonement. She does so on the back of winning the Irish Champion Hurdle in fine style last month and a repeat of that performance will give her every chance of making it third time lucky at Prestbury Park.
To do so, she’ll have to confirm Leopardstown form with Lossiemouth and that won’t be easy given the grey’s flawless Cheltenham Festival record.
Last year’s Champion Bumper heroine Bambino Fever is regarded by many Closutton insiders as one their bankers of the entire week and she unquestionably sets a high standard here.
However, Oldschool Outlaw, her main rival in this Grade Two, is the only horse to have got the better of her to date, beating her by half a length when both mares made their hurdling debuts at Naas in December.
Like many Willie Mullins-trained horses this season, Bambino Fever perhaps needed her first outing and she swiftly got back to winning ways when coasting to victory at Fairyhouse in January.
However, the Gordon Elliott-trained Oldschool Outlaw, bought by JP McManus after that Naas success, proved it to be no fluke by putting Place De La Nation firmly in her place in the Grade Three Solerina Mares Novice Hurdle at Fairyhouse last month.
Given her winning Festival form, Bambino Fever is entitled to be favourite but Oldschool Outlaw is a smart mare in her own right and she could give the market leader plenty to think about.
Gordon Elliott has won two of the last three renewals of the Stayers’ Hurdle and, having won both starts this season to take his Grade One tally to seven, 2024 hero Teahupoo has rock-solid claims to regain his crown.
Indeed, there’s an alternative world where he would be going for a fourth Stayers’ Hurdle win given he only found Cheltenham specialist Bob Olinger too good last year having finished third in a bunch finish at the 2023 Festival.
He looked better than ever when beating Bob Olinger by seven lengths at Leopardstown at Christmas and will be a mightily tough nut to crack this week.
Bob Olinger won’t surrender his Cheltenham crown without a fight but he’s an 11-year-old now and has to be vulnerable to younger legs.
And, as a six-year-old, the biggest threat to Teahupoo could be stablemate Honesty Policy.
A Grade One-winning novice hurdler, Honesty Policy has run only once this season, finishing a close third to Impose Toi in the Long Walk Hurdle at Ascot just before Christmas.
The way he stayed on that day suggests he’ll relish the searching test of stamina a Stayers’ Hurdle provides.
Whether he’ll be able to get by Teahupoo is open to debate but he certainly has the talent to get close to him.
When Kicking King won the 2005 Gold Cup he became only the second Irish-trained horse (after 1996 hero Imperial Call) to win the blue riband since Dawn Run’s famous triumph 19 years earlier. War Of Attrition landed the spoils a year later but no Irish horse struck gold again until Lord Windermere’s 2014 win. The floodgates have opened since with Irish dominance disrupted only by Coneygree in 2015 and Native River three years later. But 2026 might just be the year the empire strikes back.
King George hero The Jukebox Man is a big player for owner Harry Redknapp and trainer Ben Pauling as is Kempton fourth Jango Baie given he was only beaten half a length and shaped like he’s have won if the race was over 50 yards further.
Welsh contender Haiti Couleurs, who landed the Irish National after winning the National Hunt Chase at last year’s Festival, has won three of his four starts this season and is guaranteed to stay the Gold Cup trip.
In the absence of dual Gold Cup hero Galopin Des Champs, the Irish challenge is headed by stablemate Gaelic Warrior and while he unquestionably has the talent to win a Gold Cup, he will need to settle in the early part of the race if he is to do so.
The Jimmy Mangan-trained Spillane’s Tower put himself in the mix when winning the Cotswold Chase in January but, while it’s easy to envisage him running a big race in the Gold Cup, the sense is he’ll ultimately find one or two too good. And this year, those one or two might well be trained by Team Britain.
