Dan Skelton 2026 Cheltenham Festival stable tour
By Harry Allwood
Last Updated: Wed 25 Feb 2026
Top trainer Dan Skelton shares the inside track on his powerful squad for this year's Cheltenham Festival.
Dan Skelton looks set to secure his first National Hunt trainers' title this season, and with a strong team being prepared for this year’s Cheltenham Festival, the Alcester handler may have one hand on the trophy after the big four days in March.
Discussing his team during a media morning, organised by The Jockey Club, at his yard on Wednesday, Skelton revealed he will be sending 30-35 horses to Prestbury Park, and believes “they all have a chance”.
Skelton has won 11 races at the Cheltenham Festival, and is set to have a strong chance in each of the four championship races this year, with The New Lion, Grey Dawning, Kabral Du Mathan and L’eau du Sud all prominent in the ante-post markets.
And Skelton has numerous contenders in the handicaps who hold serious claims on paper, too, including A Pai De Nom, who is favourite for the Martin Pipe, and Madara, the 9-2 favourite for the Sun Racing Plate Handicap Chase.
Skelton's team looked in rude health with less than two weeks until the Cheltenham Festival, and it will be a surprise if he does not add to his Cheltenham Festival tally this year.
Read what Skelton had to say about his top team below.
Dan Skelton with his Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup Grey Dawning and groom Claire Thomas (Pic: Megan Dent Photography/The Jockey Club)
A Pai De Nom & Nurse Susan
Race: Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle.
“A Pai De Nom I think is favourite for the Martin Pipe. He’s had a great year and we've run him regularly. He thrives off racing. He comes here off the back of his best ever run. The track will really suit him.
“I’m super happy with him and there’s not a lot not to like. I feel like there's a bit of room in his mark. He's getting better. He's rideable. He's won at the track. Lovely.
“And then we have Nurse Susan. Yes, she did run badly the other day but I think maybe she was in season. Things didn't quite work out on a tightish track. She came into that race in the best form she's ever been in. And I think just to say that we write her off now is inappropriate.
“She, I think, will run a very big race in either that or the Mares’. I'm not sure which. She might even get confirmed for The Cup. But she came into that race at Fontwell in the best form she's ever been in.”
Ace Of Spades & Supremely West
Race: Pertemps Network Handicap Hurdle.
“We're going to run two here. Ace Of Spades has had a phenomenal year. He won a qualifier at Huntingdon. He's really learnt to stay three miles properly. A lot of horses at that distance don't really know how to race at it correctly. He has learnt.
“He's had to learn the hard way to race over that distance and now races over it very, very well, I think. I've been happy with his work. The better the ground, the better his chance. His handicap mark is as high as it's ever been, but he's the best he's ever been.
“I think he'll run well. Supremely West also runs in the race. I wouldn't say I've had this race in mind for him all season. But I toyed with the idea of whether he didn't quite stay, so I ran him over two and a half the last day. That was conclusive evidence that he definitely does want three miles. I think he's got a good chance.”
Be Aware
Race: Debenhams Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Handicap Chase.
“Be Aware is in great form. We took him to Huntingdon last year for a racecourse gallop before we ran him in the Coral Cup, which was a disaster. So, this year we've kept him at home and him to the grass gallop a few times. He's really ready.
“The advice he's given us is that he's high class without being Arkle quality – he is 66-1 for the Arkle and he's favourite for the Grand Annual. The Grand Annual is the right race to go for. Hopefully there's a couple of front runners in the race and we can just sit off them a bit."
Boombawn, Riskintheground & Madara
Race: Sun Racing Plate Handicap Chase.
“We plan to run Boombawn, who I think the handicapper has got too high, and Riskintheground, who again I think the handicapper has got too high, and Madara, who I hope he hasn't! He's coming at it from a slightly different angle. Because, obviously, horses that start in July in training, they go all season. They have a race in the end of October, November, December. He's come to it later because he had an injury.
“Hopefully, he comes at it later being that he's a fresher horse, less exposed. I was very happy with Kempton the other day. He stayed on very nicely. The track really suits him. He's obviously got a massive chance.”
Bossman Jack & Soldier Reeves
Race: Turners Novices’ Hurdle.
“I think Bossman Jack is very high class. He obviously doesn't carry Graded form into the race like some others, but he is clearly a very good horse. It'll be interesting to see how he runs.
“I can't actually tell you how well he'll run, but I know he's good. I wouldn't say he's a great work horse, but at the same time, he's not one that you go, ‘oh, jeez, he doesn't run very good’. He does go nicely. I've liked what I've seen of the track. He's obviously a good horse for a middle distance, so I think he'll run well.
“The other horse to run in the race is Soldier Reeves. I think he's been overlooked a little. He was third to Old Park Star at Haydock and was absolutely flying home. I think two and a half will suit him. Of course, he's got to make it up, numbers-wise, with a few of the others, but there are worse each-way horses than him.”
Calico
Race: Debenhams Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Handicap Chase.
“The other horse that will run in the Grand Annual is Calico, who is absolutely brilliant, obviously. I am very proud of what he's achieved this year, especially. He doesn't get any younger, but his tenacity for racing and his desire to do it is great. We may claim off him in the Grand Annual.
“It’s a little bit like those horses that are running in the Plate – he won't be a short price, but knows how to run in those big races. Those types of horses, although they don't hide a cent from the handicapper, they know how to run well in those races. I think he fits into that category.”
Diamond Street, The Sketcher, Vango Can Go & Mets Ta Ceinture
Race: Weatherbys Champion Bumper (In Memory of Sir Johnny Weatherby).
“We're going to run definitely three and maybe four in the Champion Bumper. The fourth one would be Diamond Street. He would only run if the ground was properly soft. He put up a great performance at Doncaster and stayed on really well. I think he's one of the leading English contenders on performance.
“The Sketcher won very well up at Ayr. I feel he’s a little bit like Maestro Conti. His work is improving at home and I don't think he's any back number.
“Vango Can Go has probably got the best form - third in a Listed race at Ascot, behind Bass Hunter, and we want to go left-handed. I think we're entitled to get a little closer to Bass Hunter, going left-handed, and he is not priced accordingly.
“The one that Harry is likely to ride is Mets Ta Ceinture. Obviously, she's got a big reputation from France. I don't know if a four-year-old filly has ever won this race, but she gets 17lbs towards helping that happen. Her work is very good. She's won a graded AQPS contest. She looks pretty smart and a nice horse for next season.”
Grey Dawning
Race: Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup.
“I’m very proud to call him our Gold Cup runner. It's a very interesting race for lots of reasons. The race has yet to fully take its shape. There could be last minute supplementary entries and all sorts.
“This horse is in the best form of his life. It's our intention to have had him in this form, and we have been patient to some degree to get him into this form.
“It was fairly obvious last year after Haydock, when he got beat in the very tough ground, that getting him back that year was going to be super hard. So, we took the advice from our experience and from everything else that we had that we weren't going to be going down the Gold Cup route that year, asked him some slightly lesser questions. He was very good at Kelso and he ran a beautiful race at Aintree behind Gaelic Warrior.
“This year, totally different. He was imperious in the Betfair Chase, which on numbers he should have been on that ground. Nice run in the Cotswold Chase, but lots to improve upon from there. Improvement has arrived, we are really ready and he will be there turning in, I have no doubt. Whether he's good enough from there. I don't know.
“We have a lot to answer. We probably have more to answer than some of the others but I think the only answer we have to give is on can we win a Gold Cup. I don't think any other things are unanswered. He stays 3m 2f now - you saw that in the Betfair Chase.
“There's a lot of people that still ask the question. They're entitled to ask it. I'm entitled to say that he's done it. He loves the course, he's won at the course, he's versatile on the ground as long as it's not heavy, he's rideable, he goes a little bit left-handed, so he's going the right way round. He's going to improve massively from the Cheltenham run.
“I just have a good feeling that we're going there the best we can be.”
Asked about his run in the Betfair Cotswold Chase at Cheltenham when third behind Spillane’s Tower and L’Homme Presse, Skelton went on: “It was a slow run race, it was perfect, it didn't give anyone a hard race.
“We made a mistake two out, put us on the back foot, we then couldn't win. Two things about that. On the day before the race, regardless of the outcome, it was possible to lose a Gold Cup that day, it was not possible to win one.
“Even if we'd have gone 10 lengths clear, people would have said X, Y, Z. It was impossible to win a Gold Cup that day. It was very possible to lose one by having a bad experience, a hard race, etc.
“He stayed on really well from the back of the last, came back in relatively fresh. We were able to put our foot down with him nearly straight away and push now up to the Gold Cup.”
Kabral Du Mathan
Race: Paddy Power Stayers’ Hurdle.
“We're going to run as long as the ground is not brutal. Which, looking at the long-range forecast, I would hope that it's not.
“We've been very cautious with our approach to the springtime with him. I've always got the best interest of the horse at heart… I'm trying to ensure longevity. I'm not afraid to pitch this horse into battle. That's not it at all.
“But what I don't want to do is do something now that I regret a year, two, three down the line by giving him that hard race that he didn't need at that age. I'm very happy to step him up to three miles because I'm a believer, so is Harry, we're all believers that three miles is what's going to suit him. We want to make sure that this horse has the future at that trip, that we can enjoy him for seasons to come.
“I think he comes into this very, very interestingly. He comes from a totally different angle. You've got all those horses in there that stayed three miles, know how to sort of get down and get dirty from the back of two out and really see it out. Here is a horse who's undoubtedly going to be played late and used for speed. It's an interesting twist on the race. I hope it makes for good viewing. I hope we come out on top.
“And I feel that with that speed angle, if the ground was just good to soft, I feel like we have a potential asset that maybe the others have less of these days as they've gotten older. Saying all that, it is a three-mile race. First and foremost, you have to stay three miles before you show how fast you can do three miles.
“I've been absolutely impressed with him since day one in terms of his work and his outlook. I think he looks absolutely outstanding. We've kept the condition on this horse very, very well, I feel. He's quite a light-framed horse. To me, he looks like a distance horse. I feel like his relaxing in the races is getting better.
“I don't want to over-excite and over-egg the pudding here, but I really think that if we stay three miles, and I think we will, we've got a serious player on our hands here.
“We're absolutely delighted to be going there with him. He makes up the four for the four main championship races for us, so we're very proud to have representatives in those races that really do have chances. If he stays, look out.”
Kateira
Race: Cup Handicap Hurdle.
“Kateira is going to run in The Cup. She's definitely got a chance. It was a nice run the other day at Ascot. She obviously started the season very well when she won a Listed race. Admittedly, her main competitor that day (Golden Ace) was poorly, but she started it well nonetheless.
“She got a bit lost but the longer days, a bit of sun in the air and better ground underfoot suit her. We're into a handicap with 11 stone, not 12. She loves a bit of sun on her back and it’s slowly coming together.”
L’Eau du Sud
Race: betMGM Queen Mother Champion Chase.
“He’s had a fantastic start to the year. I was blown away by the Shloer (he won the Shloer Chase at Cheltenham’s November Meeting) performance. However, the Shloer performance was probably accentuated by three factors. One, he was very ready. Two, he is brilliant fresh. And three, Jonbon obviously wasn't cherry ready that day. So I think that performance … we have to look at it through the correct lens.
“But I'd also think that what you saw at Sandown (when third in the Betfair Tingle Creek in December) is nothing like the reality. So at Sandown, he wasn't fresh. He's a horse that's very good fresh.
“The mistake I made last year is I shouldn't have run him at Warwick in the Kingmaker. I should have gone straight to the Arkle. Now that's not saying that we would have won the Arkle, but we only had sort of two and a half lengths to make up that day. And we've made sure we've not made that mistake this year.
“It's all systems go. He jumped this morning, jumped nicely. We can give him a little bit more work this week. We had him very ready for the Shloer, and he will be in at least Shloer form for this. Whether that's good enough or not, we will see.
“There's a few in the race I think personally we can beat. And there's a few in the race I think it remains to be seen, but I think we have a lot of ticks in our boxes. Course form is important - he has that and I think he's a real player.”
Maestro Conti
Race: JCB Triumph Hurdle.
“We've had some good juveniles over the time and the obvious one that stands out is Allmankind, who was a very different type of horse to what you're used to. He did it on ability, but he also did it on the fact that he just wanted to do it and he wanted to do it so desperately.
“This horse is slightly different. Full of talent, a little bit more obviously rideable and manageable and I feel like this horse can be more long term. Allmankind used himself up as a young horse because that was his desire. He just wanted to go out and do it like that.
“This horse, I feel, is a little more relaxed. He did show a little bit too much spark possibly on Trials Day and did a little bit too much halfway round. Harry had to wait on him to relax before he came home very, very strongly. I think he has … I don't want to call it an exceptional ability, because we haven't seen enough of him at his age to call him absolutely exceptional. But he has an exceptional ability that he did two very, very different things.
“He went around Kempton on decent ground and showed lots of toe. He went around Cheltenham over an extended two miles on soft ground and also won. It's a great thing to be able to have, that versatility. And that talent, not many have that.
“He's got course form. His training has been exceptional. His work has only got better. I feel like this is one of our best chances of the whole week.
“It's quite exciting. And that's why I feel that when, historically, when we've had horses like him in the spring going into spring targets, not just Cheltenham, like any spring target, and their work is improving like that, they're going to run big.”
Made U Blush, Tralee Girl, The Mighty Celt & Misterdoc
Race: McCoy Contractors Juvenile Handicap Hurdle (Fred Winter).
“I’d love to get the two fillies, Made U Blush and Tralee Girl, in the Fred Winter, but I think we might struggle to get in. The two above there that probably will get in are The Mighty Celt and Misterdoc.
“The Mighty Celt ran first time for us at Haydock the other day. He ran really well and had to give away a penalty. A fast run race would really suit him. Misterdoc got his act together last time. and won quite nicely at Ludlow. He was way too keen at Chepstow and took a blow. He's got some nice French form.”
Mille Et Une Vies
Race: Ryanair Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle.
“Mille Et Une Vies has some very high-class graded form in fillies’ races in Auteuil. She is, to our eye, a very suitable horse for this race. She jumps very well and settles. She obviously is good.
“She's got a mark of 135 which is super high for a juvenile filly and I think she gets 9lb for being a four-year-old. So, 9 plus 135 is 144. That would be a pretty high mark in this race, right?”
Moneygarrow
Race: Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle.
“Moneygarrow has the perfect run style for the race, in my opinion. I think historically it's been won by horses who've probably had lots and lots of runs. He doesn't drop quite into that category, but I do like the way he races. He'll come home strongly.
“He's a contender. I don't go any further than contender, because he's 20-1, not 6 -4. But yeah, he's definitely a contender. His form had a nice boost the other day as well with Swindon Village winning.”
Mydaddypaddy
Race: Skybet Supreme Novices’ Hurdle.
“You didn't see him at The Festival last year but he started his career very well in a bumper and has always looked high-class. We've been delighted with how he's transferred into hurdles this year.
“I feel like I could have done things a little differently in the build-up to the Formby. And I think you'll see a better horse than you saw in the Formby (William Hill Formby Novices’ Hurdle at Aintree on Boxing Day).
“Personally, I think this horse is coming into the type of form that we need him to be in. We were always going to go from Aintree to Cheltenham. We've not missed anything in between. And I feel like we are coming into the form that we can show. I think he will put up a career best on the Tuesday. Whether that's good enough or not, we will find out.
“Physically, he's a strong horse. He's a different type to The New Lion. The New Lion is slightly smaller and probably more furnished. This horse, you can just see, to me anyway, he screams a bit of a chaser. I've already alluded to next year's Arkle, but I don't want to be one of those guys that looks forward, forward, forward all the time.
“Yeah, he's got a lot to learn but I think he's very high class. Our hat's in the ring. There's others that have obviously shown flashier form. But I just don't think, for me, you've had a chance to see him at his best…
“We learn from getting beat. I'm not one of these guys that want every horse to go off 3-1 on and win hard held by 10 lengths. You know me better than that. But yeah, if you get beat, you have to learn from it.”
Panic Attack
Race: Mrs Paddy Power Mares’ Chase.
"Panic Attack runs here, not in the Ryanair. Maestro Conti is one of our best chances of the week and she (Panic Attack) is the other one, I feel. She's in unbelievable form.
“I don't know what happened this year. I don't know why she's that good. It's not like she's drinking different water or something. I just don't know why she's that good. But she is an absolute credit to herself.
“She loves racing. She's got better as the years go by. I wouldn't mind betting that the Listed race at Newbury was her best run. Even though she had a fairly straightforward job - the way she did it, the feel she gave Harry. Her form at home has been phenomenal. She looks great. Whatever beats her wins. She is absolutely flying. I'm super happy with her.”
Take No Chances
Race: Close Brothers Mares’ Hurdle.
“I was delighted to see that everyone started paying attention to her recently. She was third in the race last year. She will certainly run no worse a race.
“She is being campaigned to run a better race because we've kept one race away from her. So, we've run her once less this year in preparation to get her as best as we can. She will be more suited by the New Course on the Thursday as, obviously, the Mares’ Hurdle has now changed from Tuesday to Thursday. She'll be more suited to that.
“Of course, she has to come up against Wodhoo and possibly Lossiemouth and others. But she will ensure that they run an honest race. She is super consistent and she will go very well, I'm sure.”
Tellherthename & Sinnatra
Race: William Hill County Hurdle.
“Tellherthename will be having his first run for us. He’s a very high-class horse and his work is as good as you can get a horse to work, to be honest with you. I know he's come with a catalogue of back issues, but we've worked hard to iron those out. Whether we have or we haven't will be evident on the Friday.
“We've asked him plenty at home. We took him for a racecourse gallop and he went nicely. Like I say, we won't know that final bit until we run. But I can assure you, underneath there is a very, very good horse.
“I hope, for him and for his owners' sake, that whether it's then or another day, you get to see at the track what he does at home, because it has been pretty impressive. Will he be ready enough for the County? He'll be ready.
“Sinnatra also runs. He got beat Huntingdon in a Listed race over two and a half. It's behind that. We were a bit frustrated with him that day - we don't mind getting beat, we get beat all the time. But what annoyed us was that this horse just appeared to be playing. He didn't appear to be concentrating. There was a race going on over there, and he was quite happy being over here.
“There's a lot to come with this horse. I think when he engages, he'll be better. So we said, ‘look, the only way you're going to learn is if we put you in the learning environment’. We brought him out to Warwick and he won very well.
“He remains off the same mark and I think off that mark, it is very much not beyond him. We just may be dealing with a child in a grown-up's race. But there will be a day when it all drops in. There will be no finer time for that than in the County Hurdle.”
The New Lion
Race: Unibet Champion Hurdle.
“I think he's in great form and he looks magnificent. His season had a rocky start. Obviously, he went to Newcastle and ended up where you don't want to end up, but I learnt a good bit about him that day.
“I feel like coming into the season, the one thing that was an unanswered question for me was how will he step down in trip? Has he got the speed to deal with two miles? And I felt that he answered that pretty conclusively that day, despite ending up on the floor.
“Then he only enhanced that opinion for me when we ran in the trials on Trials Day. Of course, that was a bit of a non-event. He went slow, looked up. Two horses that on ratings he should have beaten, but I just liked the way he showed all that speed. He was assured with his speed that day.
“Harry (Skelton, jockey) held him into the bottom of all the hurdles. He's quick-footed. We like what we've seen at home. I think he's in great physical condition. I wouldn’t swap him - I really wouldn't.
“The only thing perhaps missing off the CV this year was a clear round and a high place, or potentially better in the Fighting Fifth. We've always planned that we were going to do what we've done, so I don't feel like we're coming into this in form that we didn't expect ourselves to be in.
“I was a bit surprised he was favourite (for the Unibet Champion Hurdle) over the summer, because others had achieved more at two miles, but I'm not surprised he's nearly favourite now.
“It's sport, there's an element of the unknown, and that's what makes all sport interesting, right? We've all got opinions, and let's see how it plays out on the day.
“He's not a fabulous work horse, but he gets to the track and he really gives you everything. He comes alive. We're really happy with him. As you can see, his condition is absolutely fantastic.”
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