Cheltenham Betting
Riby Walsh - Festival Banker
The torrent of confidence and support behind Supreme Novice favourite Dunguib has, for many, made him the banker of the whole Cheltenham Festival meeting.
However the real banker of the four day racing feast could well lie in the shape of Ruby Walsh being top dog amongst his peers once again.
The fact is Walsh rarely picks up a bad ride. Riding week in week out for the Paul Nicholls stable, he regularly has an immense crop of talent at his disposal and this will be witnessed to no greater effect than at the best national hunt meeting on earth.
Without question, nothing in racing is a certainty. That is why even the most ardent Dunguib supporter must a shred of doubt. But with the quantity of high calibre horses that will be ridden by Walsh this March, seeing a healthy number of winners clocked up by the Irishman is as close to a certainty as you are going to get.
Walsh is 1-2 favourite to be top jockey at the Festival - and here’s why.
In the meetings showpiece event, the Gold Cup, Ruby will be taking the reigns on Kauto Star who is seeking a third success in the race. The ten-year old is streaks ahead of anything else in the race, with the exception of Denman, and is arguably one of the greatest chasers of all time. The relationship built up between Walsh and Kauto has made them almost insurmountable.
Big Bucks is a red hot favourite for the World Hurdle, and many believe this could be Walsh’s easiest ride of the meeting. Winner of the race last year, there doesn’t appear to be anything else in the field that will get near him.
In the Champion Chase, Master Minded will be out to make history and win the race for a third time. Perhaps not quite as fast as he has been, he looks set to tough it out with the classy Kalahari King but with Walsh piloting him up the Cheltenham hill he will definitely have an edge over his rival.
Elsewhere, Walsh will be in the saddle to partner The Nightingale who has real claims in the RSA Chase. On the same day, he is likely to jump aboard Bishopsfurze for Willie Mullins in the Champion Bumper. He is a real speed merchant and is fancied to add to Mullins’s impressive tally in the race.
Poquelin has improved drastically in recent months and Walsh will be there beside him in the Ryanair Chase - another cracking chance of a winner for Ruby. Even in the Champion Hurdle, probable mount Celestial Halo, the forgotten horse of the race, is not without a chance.
At 1-2 he may seem a bit short for the regular punter but there is no other bet for the Festival which carries as little risk as naming Ruby Walsh as the top jockey. Half a dozen winners plus for the man from County Kildare is definitely on the cards.
