As the national hunt season beings to
really get going, it may be worth a look at some of the possible
contenders for the 2017 Cheltenham Festival. Indeed, bookies are
already providing odds for the likely candidates in Cheltenham
future races markets. Sadly, one horse who will not be
taking part in Cheltenham in 2017 is the three-time Festival winner
Vautour, who was put down earlier this week after a freak accident at
his training ground. While that is sad news, it hasn’t altogether
dampened the expectations of an exciting national hunt season ahead.
The buzz around Cheltenham has started early this year, with so much
star quality in national hunt at the moment; all that is left is for
punters to put the pieces of the puzzle together.
As ever, it is always worth looking at
the horses who were
2016 winners - click here for more information -
before making your Cheltenham selections. There promises to be quite
a few coming back in 2017 for another shot at glory. One who
certainly fits the bill of returning hero is Thistlecrack. Colin
Tizzard’s gelding has something very special about him, and rumours
of a Gold Cup entry abound at the moment. From a spectator’s
perspective, the thought of a showdown between Thistlecrack and 2016
Gold Cup winner Don Cossack is mouth-watering to say the least. But
the Gold Cup always has a strong field, so don’t rule out the likes
of Cue Card, Coneygree and perhaps Djakadam, all of whom have big
race calibre.
One firm favourite of the Cheltenham
crowd is Faugheen, who missed the last Festival through injury. He is
also likely to be back in 2017. The hurdler has been nearly
untouchable in recent years, and he will be looking to regain the
Champion Hurdle trophy that he won in 2015. But who will Faugheen -
providing he comes back fit and ready - face in the Champion Hurdle?
Much may depend on how Willie Mullins shuffles his pack, but with
Yorkhill, Annie Power and Min also at his disposal, a Mullins’
1-2-3 is not out of the question.
Speaking of comebacks, the 2016
Cheltenham Festival was treated to one of the greatest of all time
when Sprinter Sacre triumphed in the Queen Mother Champion Chase. The
Nicky Henderson trained horse was once rated as one of the greatest
steeplechasers of all time, but was ravaged by injuries in 2014 and
2015. Punters should certainly not rule out Sprinter Sacre equalling
Badsworth Boy’s record of three Champion Chase wins in 2017.
Henderson’s team has been rather tight-lipped about whether or not
the horse will be back next year. If he does return, he could face
competition in the shape of the mercurial Douvan. If the pair race,
it could be one for the ages, with the much younger Douvan perhaps
representing the greatest challenge to date for the much-loved
‘Sprinter’.
Of course, Cheltenham 2017 will
undoubtedly reveal new stars of national hunt racing as well. That
special atmosphere of the Festival sometimes gets the best out of
horses that have never really performed on the grand stage before.
The Festival is fertile ground for new heroes to be born amidst a
cauldron of drama, fervour and excitement. Regardless of the final
results, we are sure to be in for a thrilling week.