Cheltenham Festival 2026

FAQs About the Cheltenham Festival

What is the biggest race at the Cheltenham Festival?

The Cheltenham Festival is most famous for the Cheltenham Gold Cup, the blue riband of steeplechasing is run on the Friday of Cheltenham Festival week and remains the pinnacle of the National Hunt Season every year. The very best stamina laden, classy thoroughbreds battle it out over a demanding 3miles 2 furlongs and 70 yards of Prestbury Park and it’s a race that delivers amazing finishes, brilliant stories with hero moments and heartbreak in equal measure. The winner of a Gold Cup is crowning a career, often 4 or more years long already at the point of lining up for this event and destiny awaits. Winners like Desert Orchid, Kicking King, Kauto Star, Best Mate and the great Arkle live long in the memory but if they had never won this race, they would have been good but may never have been considered greats of the Sport.

Which jockey has the most wins at the Cheltenham Festival?

Ruby Walsh is the winning most rider at the Festival of all time but as he retired after last season then opportunity knocks for Paul Townend, the current number one rider for leading trainer Willie Mullins and others to start working away on his massive total of 59 Cheltenham Festival winners!

Closest to him amongst the current riders are Barry Geraghty with 38 winners and Richard Johnson with 23 winners. Expect them to add to that number this time around given the powerful trainer and owner connections they will ride for. Up and coming jockeys like Jack Kennedy and Rachael Blackmore will also be hoping to start building a powerful Cheltenham Festival winners tally.

The Cheltenham Festival will always be the pinnacle for any jumps jockey riding in the UK or Ireland. Each year the jockey with the most winners at the Festival is crowned as the leading jockey for the Festival and only the very best riders in the game figure time and time again.

Leading Cheltenham Festival jockeys of the last decade listed below with winners from that year’s Festival in brackets:

2022 Paul Townend (5)

2021 Rachael Blackmore (6)

2020 Paul Townend (5)

2019 Nico de Boinville (3)

2018 Davy Russell (4)

2017 Ruby Walsh (4)

2016 Ruby Walsh (7)

2015 Ruby Walsh (4)

2014 Ruby Walsh (3)

2013 Ruby Walsh (4)

2012 Barry Geraghty (5)

2011 Ruby Walsh (5)

How many races are at the Cheltenham Festival ?

These days the Cheltenham Festival comprises of four days of racing and a total of 28 races spread across Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday of the second week in March.

What time is the Gold Cup?

The Cheltenham Gold Cup is run at 3.30pm on Friday 17th March 2025 at Cheltenham Racecourse. For latest runners and riders and the best odds available check out our latest Horse Racing odds page.

How many horses run in the Gold Cup?

The field size for the Cheltenham Gold Cup varies and punters can expect anything from 9 runners, the smallest field since the turn of the century, to 22 runners, the largest field in the same period. The main factor effecting the number of runners is the weather which determines the state of the ground, known as the “Going description” on the day. Softer ground brought about by lots of rain can mean lower turn out and it pays to know which horses have shown their best form on the prevailing ground conditions come Gold Cup day at the Festival.

What Tipsters should I follow at the Cheltenham Festival?

Here at transparentbets.com you are in for a treat with expert analysis, tips and trends on every race at the Cheltenham Festival all under one roof. We have leading jockey Keith Donoghue with his Festival insight, the #racehour podcast with serious punters pointing you in the right direction, daily Cheltenham Festival racing tips from our exclusive tipsters and with our extensive reviews of the best Cheltenham offers available you will certainly get the most bang for your buck during the biggest horse racing event of the year.

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