Cheltenham Festival ante-post tips: Three selections to consider for 2024 event

2024 Cheltenham ante-post tips: 

• Ballyburn to win the Baring Bingham Novices’ Chase (Day Two) – 4/5 with BetGoodwin
• Crebilly E/W to win the Plate Handicap Chase (Day Three) – 4/1 with BetUK
• Envoi Allen to win the Ryanair Chase (Day Three) – 7/2 with BoyleSports

The 2024 Cheltenham Festival takes place next week and there’s still the opportunity to place some ante-post bets on this prestigious National Hunt meeting.

The advantage of ante-post betting is that you are often able to secure bigger odds ahead of the action, especially if you end up backing a horse which becomes a market mover – and we know that there are big price changes after the 24-hour declarations have been made. 

The best betting sites are now offering ‘Non-Runner Money Back’ when it comes to ante-post betting on next week’s meeting, so punters have the added insurance of getting cash back if the nominated horse doesn’t line up in that particular race or happens to be withdrawn for any reason. 

With all that in mind, here’s our Cheltenham ante-post tips ahead of the 2024 event.

Ballyburn to win the Baring Bingham Novices’ Chase (Day Two)

It now looks as though Ballyburn will run in this Day Two opener rather than the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle and in the latest Cheltenham odds it’s odds-on that the six-year-old will claim a victory there.

Many racing fans hold the opinion that the Willie Mullins-trained runner will oblige with a victory wherever he ends up and it’s hard to bet against the form of a horse who has won five of his six races thus far.

He was a facile winner at the Dublin Racing Festival when winning over two miles and had previously scored a success over two miles and four furlongs, also at Leopardstown.

It appears that Mullins has decided to pitch his stable star over a longer distance according to horse racing betting sites and we can see Ballyburn being sent off at odds-on once it has been decided that he will take his chances in this encounter. 

It’s very hard to oppose Ballyburn who still looks a backable price to kick Day Two off in style. He is likely to act well on the soft conditions that are anticipated on the old course.

Cheltenham ante-post Tip 1: Ballyburn to win the Baring Bingham Novices’ Chase (Day Two) – 4/5 with BetGoodwin

Crebilly to win the Plate Handicap Chase (Day Three)

Crebilly was running very well when falling at Cheltenham earlier in the season, with the horse successful at Exeter last time out. 

Sent off at 5/2 in February, the runner was able to oblige over two miles and three furlongs on heavy ground, beating favourite Tahmuras in the process. 

This could be a successful festival for owner JP McManus and we think an each-way bet on this seven-year-old could be worth an interest, especially if there’s some cut in the ground. 

Crebilly was travelling really strongly at Prestbury Park in mid-November when sent off as the 3/1 favourite on betting apps in that aforementioned handicap chase and could well have delivered but for his fall. 

The Jonjo O’Neill-trained runner wasn’t far behind when finishing fourth in a novices’ chase in mid-December, with the horse making a couple of jumping errors in a field of six runners. More fluency this time around could make all the difference. 

Cheltenham ante-post Tip 2: Crebilly to win the Plate Handicap Chase – 4/1 each-way BetUK

Envoi Allen to win the Ryanair Chase (Day Three) 

The Ryanair Chase betting market includes runners who will be diverted elsewhere such as El Fabiolo, although we’re backing Envoi Allen to repeat his victory of 12 months ago.

The 10-year-old is a class act and the Henry de Bromhead-trained runner has looked in good nick in his two appearances this season. 

Although neither of these resulted in a victory, there was a third-placed finish at Gowran Park on heavy ground before a smarter run when finishing second behind the Gold Cup-bound Gerri Colombe in November.

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There was everything to like about the horse’s victory in the Ryanair last year when Rachael Blackmore was able to steer him to a success by nearly three lengths ahead of favourite Shishkin. 

It wasn’t a fluent jumping performance on that occasion either. 

Cheltenham ante-post Tip 3: Envoi Allen to win the Ryanair Chase – 7/2 with BoyleSports