Category Archives: Races

The 2012 Cheltenham Gold Cup is shaping up to be a very exciting race and although at the time of writing the ante post favourite is clearly last year’s winner Long Run (on which the best odds available are around 24/10 on Betfair) it is by no means certain that he will equal last year’s performance. Kauto Star, the winner of the Gold Cup in 2007 and 2009 is back in contention and is priced around 4/1 which makes him second favourite. Grand Crus is the third favourite at 9/1 and the fourth is Synchronised at 12/1.

Before the King George VI Chase at Kempton Park on Boxing Day 2011 it looked as if it was a fairly safe bet to pick Long run as the 2012 Gold Cup winner, but now choosing between Long Run and Kauto Star is a little bit more difficult.

Before his winning performance at the 2011 King George VI Chase it appeared that Kauto Star might be getting a little old, however horses that are getting a little past their prime rarely win races such as that one on the fifth occasion. According to his rider Ruby Walsh, Kauto Star is as fine a horse as once was Arkle. Long Run had been the firm favourite and it did seem that the smart money was on him. In the end he was beaten by one and a half lengths by Kauto Star in a remarkable and courageous run. Kauto Star and Ruby Walsh are a fine combination and the horse ran and jumped with all the appearance of a horse half his age. His blues of last year’s mid-season triple failures seem to be despatched to history; Kauto Star is back. The crowd was ecstatic.

In the Cheltenham Gold Cup Kauto Star and long Run will race against each other for the fifth occasion and each has won on two of the occasions. So which of them will win in 2012?

The Gold Cup is a particularly testing race and the final run up the Cheltenham Hill can be particularly gruelling; many horses have lost the race just there. If you bet with your heart then Kauto Star might be your choice, but if you bet with your head then you might consider that the younger legs on Long Run will propel him up the hill to be first past the post.

The Cheltenham Gold Cup seems to attract more speculation regarding which horse will win it than any other race. Perhaps this is because of the importance of the race. It is the most important jump race on the National Hunt calendar and the most prestigious. As a result it attracts many of the very top horses.

The defending Champion is Imperial Commander and this season he has been going great guns. He has been performing very well. He won the Betfair Chase with relative ease and he won at Haydock against a strong field. The result of these wins was a shortening of his Gold Cup odds but he has also had a small set back. He injured his leg and although the wound is healing well, he is unlikely to run again before the Gold Cup so he might find that he has not got the staying power this year for such an arduous race.

Naturally many punters favour Kauto Star, and who can blame them. He has been going reasonably well this season and he got off to a flying start at Down Royal; he won the JNwine Champion Chase comfortably victory which started people favouring him for the Gold Cup. Unfortunately, it has not all been good. In the King George VI Chase at Kempton he lost out to Long Run who won the race with ease and generally looked the superior horse. Long Run is trained by Nicky Henderson and seems to be in tip top form to take the Gold Cup. It is certainly worth keeping an eye on his price. It could be that this year he will be the new champion.

Naturally we must still consider Denman’s chances Naturally many Cheltenham betting punters favour Kauto Star. He has already won the cup on two occasions, in 2008 and 2009, losing out to Kuato star in 2009. In 2010 he came second to Imperial Commander, and although many of his fans were disappointed, second is only one place of victory. However he has not been in great form this season. In the Hennessy Gold Cup he carried the top weight and started very well, however he ran out of steam in the closing stages and lost out to Diamond Harry.

Diamond Harry, trained by Nick Williams, is another horse worth watching and could easily spring a surprise.

The biggest racing day in the world of horse racing would have to be Cheltenham Gold Cup. Designed to be a spectacular race entertaining thousands, if not millions, of horseracing fans across the globe, the Cheltenham Gold Cup is a race you wouldn’t want to miss for sure. This year’s Cheltenham Gold Cup is even more interesting with several rivalries towards becoming the 2010 Cheltenham Gold Cup champion already heating up since several months ago.

For the top three contenders, we have Kauto Star, Denman, and of course the experienced Imperial Commander. These three horses will be competing with other quality horses including Cooldine, Tricky Trickster, What A Friend, Carruthers, the Calgary Bay, and many more. These are top horses indeed, so action pumped race is to be expected.

There is nothing better than witnessing the majestic Cheltenham Gold Cup directly, so make sure you get your hands on some cheltenham tickets in good time. The racecourse has tons of amenities to enjoy and amazing enclosures available, you will have the best time enjoying Cheltenham Gold Cup for sure.

Let’s not forget that betting is also a huge aspect of horseracing. If you want to place bets on your favorite horses competing in the Cheltenham Gold Cup, make sure you compare odds and place your bets early. This way, you can be much more profitable and get better odds on your bets. Who knows, you might win handsome cash rewards from your beta. Make sure you use available free bets offered by top online bookmakers as well to place risk-free bets easily.