Cheltenham Tips 2025: Cheat sheet for Day 1 on Tuesday including 40/1 shot

The 2025 Cheltenham Festival gets underway on Tuesday, March 11, with a seven-race card and lots of Irish interest from the yards of Willie Mullins, Gordon Elliott, Henry De Bromhead, Gavin Cromwell and others. We've picked out the best bets on Day 1.

1.20 - Supreme Novices' Hurdle - Kopek Des Bordes is the odds-on favourite here for Willie Mullins and should win. The trainer is reaching for a hood for the first time which is an aim to keep the horse from boiling over given the huge crowd, etc. He is too short for me so I'm going with Salvator Mundi each-way. He is certainly quirky but very talented and as a small bet in the first race, he's worth my fiver each-way at 14/1. 

Selection: Salvator Mundi each-way - 14/1

2.00 - Arkle Novices' Chase - I think it is as simple as Majborough just going out and winning this. The trick is to find the one to chase him home for the forecast. Although beaten by L'Eau Du Sud at Sandown, I think Touch Me Not can upset the odds and run on into second place. 

Selection: Majborough/Touch Me Not - Forecast - 11/2

2.40 - Ultima Handicap Chase - This is a race in which Irish horses and trainers struggle and I think it will stay in Britain again. I like having a big each-way bet in this and I'm going with Stay Away Fay (40/1) here. A previous festival winner whose form has been abysmal lately, but Paul Nicholls says he's working well at home. On his best form, he would be well able to mix it with this company over this trip. Watch this space.

READ NEXT: Mullins keen to keep Kopek cool in what will be an emotionally-charged Supreme test

Selection: Stay Away Fay (EW) - 40/1

3.20 - Mare's Hurdle - This race revolves around Lossiemouth who swerved the Champion Hurdle to come here instead, the race she won last year. She was very impressive last year and looks far too good again this year, albeit taking a fall in defeat to State Man last time out. It's far too competitive behind her with a lot of each-way chances. I just can't land on one. I'll stick Lossiemouth into the daily accumulator and move on. 

4.00 - Champion Hurdle - The clash everyone is waiting for; Constitution Hill versus Brighterdaysahead. The latter is the latest Irish super mare, this time from Gordon Elliott's yard wearing the colours of Michael O'Leary. She would be the toast of Prestbury Park if she could topple a horse widely regarded as the best national hunt horse in training. Brighterdaysahead put in a barely believable run last time out when she beat Winter Fog and State Man by more than 30 lengths. Tactics will be key here and her camp will be hoping to run the legs out of Constitution Hill to make it a staying test at the end. Time will tell if she can sustain that gallop and have enough in hand to see it out, but I believe she can do it. Constitution Hill has been exceptional and has yet to be beaten under the training of Nicky Henderson. He's had his health issues and has put in his least impressive performances lately. It would be remarkable for him to regain the crown he lost having missed last year's Festival but Irish eyes will be smiling if Brighterdaysahead can pull it off.

Selection: Brighterdaysahead - 9/4

4.40 - Fred Winter Juvenile Handicap Hurdle - I have come to this race late but I'm smitten with Sony Bill (12/1) for Willie Mullins and Paul Townend. It's rare for that combo on the racecard to come with such juicy odds, but a look at the form book gives him every chance despite shouldering joint top weight. Sony Bill has twice lost out to Hello Neighbour, by seven or eight lengths on both occasions, and that rival is one of the market leaders in the Triumph Hurdle on Friday. That form is rock solid as I think Hello Neighbour will win the Triumph Hurdle. Sony Bill had a couple of good runs in France before being switched to the Willie Mullins yard. 

Selection: Sony Bill (EW) - 12/1

5.20 - National Hunt Chase - To finish the day, I'm having two each-way in this; Will Do (12/1) for Gordon Elliott and Gericault Roque (9/1) for David Pipe. The latter was second in the Ultima over a similar distance at Cheltenham in 2022. He ran with credit in a couple of starts after that and then had a 783-day lay-off before running again in January of this year. He ran with credit that day and the handicapper hasn't been too hard on him. If he is near his best, he'll be in the mix here. Will Do is the choice of jockey Jack Kennedy and has caught the eye in a couple of big handicap chases. He was second in a Grand National trial at Punchestown last month and was a respectable sixth in the Thyestes at Gowran in January. He's not without a chance in this ordinary enough field. 

Selections: Will Do (12/1) and Gericault Roque (9/1) - Both eachway