Cheltenham Festival 2018: Day two betting guide and tips for the Queen Mother Champion Chase and Coral Cup

It was a good opening day for the bookies but Wednesday could be very different

Matt Trounce
Wednesday 14 March 2018 05:07 EDT
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Cheltenham Festival 2018: Everything you need to know

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Cheltenham Festival opened with a bang on Tuesday and it was a good one for the bookmakers as Buveur d'Air won the day's big race, the Champion Hurdle, and another short-priced favourite, Footpad, won the Arkle.

But that is history now and already we are looking forward to day two, and the profits it may bring.

So we drafted in Matt Trounce, one of Ladbrokes' trading team, to give us his tips for the second day of action from Cheltenham:

The feature race on Day 2 is the Queen Mother Champion Chase (3.30), and we have an outstanding renewal on our hands with Altior, Douvan and Min all set to go to post. Given Altior and Douvan have both had interrupted preps, I will be siding with the up-and-coming Min. He was a taking winner in Ireland last time and can avenge his defeat by Altior at the meeting in 2016.

Best price: Min - 10/3 (3.30 Cheltenham: Queen Mother Champion Chase)

The biggest betting race of the day is the Coral Cup (2.50) and a maximum field of 26 go to post.

With conditions set to be testing this will take some getting and I'll be favouring the battle hardened horses over some of the more lightly raced ones at the top of the market. One that makes plenty of appeal is Royal Vacation (nap) for the Colin Tizzard yard. Better known as a chaser, he is attractively handicapped over hurdles and shaped well against superior horses when last seen on new years day. His yard are in much better form now and interestingly he has also had a wind op since his last run.

The best race meeting of the year is upon us
The best race meeting of the year is upon us (Action Images via Reuters)

Best price: Royal Vacation 33/1 (2.50 Cheltenham: Coral Cup)

The card is rounded off by the Champion Bumper (5.30) and the market is dominated by Irish Horses. However, at a price Thebannerkingrebel makes plenty of appeal each way. He is two out two for the Jamie Snowden yard and there is no limit to his potential.

Best price: Thebannerkingrebel 20/1 (5.30 Cheltenham: Champion Bumper)

Matt Trounce is an odds compiler for Ladbrokes

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