The Cheltenham Festival is just over a month away, and we are now starting to get an idea of the main protagonists of the 2021 event. Chacun Pour Soi now looks nailed on for the Champion Chase after a stunning performance at Leopardstown last weekend. Honeysuckle and Epatante are shaping up for a titanic battle for the Champion Hurdle. In the Gold Cup, two-time winner Al Boum Photo has had his feet up for the last few months watching his rivals flounder. Willie Mullins will be happy with Al Boum Photo’s one run this season, and the 9yo is a worthy favourite for a historic hat-trick next month.
But while we might see an upset in those races mentioned above – it is Cheltenham, after all – none of them seems as open as the feature race on St Patrick’s Thursday (18th March), the Stayers’ Hurdle. At the time of writing, there are two favourites – Paisley Park and Thyme Hill. Both are trending somewhere between 3/1 and 4/1. The pair traded blows over the winter, each beating the other into second place by a length. But, unlike the Champion Hurdle, the Stayers’ does not feel like a showdown between two horses.
Sire du Berlais is getting a lot of backing
Reading through the Stayers hurdle tips and predictions, and betting chatter on racing forums, one name seems to stick out as the main spoiler – Sire du Berlais. In fact, it’s a strange situation: Everyone is talking about Sire du Berlais as a potential winner of this race, but the money is not moving the market at all. He remains somewhere in the 8/1-9/1 range on the ante-post betting.
The field will obviously be whittled down as trainers and owners decide their moves, but other names declared for the race include Kemboy (12/1), the mares Roskana and Benie Des Dieux (both around 10/1), and Champ, whose odds are ranging from as low as 8/1 to as high as 20/1. That’s seven big-name runners, none of whom would be seen as surprising winners of the 2021 Stayers’ Hurdle.
Even on the outside of the market, you have names like Great White Shark (40/1) – a mare who is much, much better than her disappointing showing in the Galmoy Hurdle recently. Sam Spinner (66/1), who finished second to Paisley Park in 2019, has had a poor time with injuries, but connections believe he can spring a surprise.
Gordon Elliott has the Stayers’ Hurdle in his sights
So, who to pick? Well, there is a reason that Sire Du Berlais is getting so much attention from racing experts. He is a two-time winner at the festival, winning the Pertemps Network Final in 2020 and 2019. The Stayers’ is obviously a step up in class, but he has shown that he like the New Course, and the distance is clearly no problem. Getting 9/1 for Gordon Elliott’s 9yo really does look like fantastic value. Elliott is targeting this race, and Sire du Berlais has no other entries.
Gordon Elliott has the Stayers’ Hurdle in his sights
So, who to pick? Well, there is a reason that Sire Du Berlais is getting so much attention from racing experts. He is a two-time winner at the festival, winning the Pertemps Network Final in 2020 and 2019.
The Stayers’ is obviously a step up in class, but he has shown that he like the New Course, and the distance is clearly no problem. Getting 9/1 for Gordon Elliott’s 9yo really does look like fantastic value. Elliott is targeting this race, and Sire du Berlais has no other entries.
