The 2022 Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup: runner-by-runner guide

The jewel in Cheltenham Festival’s crown is the Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup and Friday's wide-open renewal promises to be a thriller.

Ask six people who they think might win, and you might get six different answers. The aspirants have been taking it in turns this season to win, or fluff their lines, in the various races recognised as stepping stones to the big one.

The first three home in the Gold Cup last year, Minella Indo, A Plus Tard and Al Boum Photo, will meet again, while Tornado Flyer, Galvin and Protektorat are among intriguing new faces. Plenty of others will also fancy their chances of a starring role.

Here’s a guide to the 11 who will line up plus a verdict.

Official rating: 170. Odds: 10-1.

Willie Mullins had endured a torrid time in the Gold Cup (including six second places) before Al Boum Photo came along and won racing’s biggest prize in successive years for him in 2019 and 2020. He made a valiant bid to complete his hat-trick last year, but Minella Indo and A Plus Tard were a bit too strong. There’s no obvious reason why he should turn the tables and the stats are not in his favour. Also, his usual comeback win at Tramore lacked a bit of sparkle and Mullins said at a media day last month that the ten-year-old had not been in the best form at home. He's now equipped with first-time cheekpieces, which you can read two ways.

Official rating: 173. Odds: 7-2.

Ran a cracker when splitting Minella Indo and Al Boum Photo in last year’s renewal and went agonisingly close to landing a second Irish Gold Cup on his latest start, having waltzed home in the Betfair Chase before that. His credentials are there for all to see (also won easily at the Festival in 2019 and was a close third in the Ryanair Chase a year later) and he seems effective on all types of ground. Kept fresh for the big day, as he has for his past three runs at the Festival, and Honeysuckle's Champion Hurdle win on Tuesday will have calmed any stable nerves.

Official rating: 164. Odds: 25-1.

He’s acquired something of a cult following with his quirks and unpredictable nature, and much could depend on his mood on the day. Signed off last season with a romp off a mark of 152 in a Punchestown handicap and would have run well in Grade One company on his first two starts this year but for failing to complete after late lapses. He went off a gambled-on favourite for the Irish Gold Cup last time but never really threatened to get involved. He’s possibly best over a bare 3m and going right-handed, but with him there’s an always an element of “you never know”.

Official rating: 159. Odds: 66-1.

He’s Mr Reliable in the top handicaps and capable of outrunning his odds, but he is surely be biting off more than he can chew. Third to Chantry House in the Cotswold Chase last time and another crack at the Ultima Handicap Chase (third in that last year) on Tuesday would have made more sense.

Official rating: 160. Odds: 16-1.

He’s got an excellent wins-to-runs ratio and clicked in Grade One races at Cheltenham (won the Turners’) and Aintree (thumped Shan Blue) at the end of last season, and Nicky Henderson seems bullish. However, Chantry House fluffed his lines badly in the King George and made heavy weather of landing the Cotswold Chase last time, when equipped with first-time cheekpieces. He’s going to have to be a lot sharper, and better, to become the first Cotswold winner since Mr Mulligan (2000) to go on to Gold Cup glory.

Official rating: 167. Odds: 7-2.

Gordon Elliott suggested the Grand National would be his main target at the start of the season but his prolific eight-year-old, winner of seven of his past eight races, has kept climbing the ranks and more than deserves his shot at the big one. He looked all stamina when landing last season’s National Hunt Chase at the Festival but still had the speed to collar A Plus Tard in the Savills Chase last time, albeit the suspicion being that the runner-up was not quite at his best that day. His combination of pace/staying power and straightforward nature make him hard to ignore.

Official rating: 173. Odds: 5-1.

There have been a few ups and downs in his story, but just look at his Festival record. He showed a great attitude to win the Gold Cup last year, having landed the Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle two years earlier. And in between he was touched off in the Brown Advisory Novices Chase. This season has raised a few questions, not least his subdued display in the King George, but he got back on track when runner-up in the Irish Gold Cup and now returns to his favourite stamping ground. His trainer has a theory that he is at his best in the spring and he landed the Champion Hurdle with Honeysuckle on Tuesday.

Official rating: 164. Odds: 8-1.

He’s not finished out of the first two in seven races in the past two seasons and he’s cranked his form up a notch this term – finishing a staying-on second in the Paddy Power Gold Cup (off a mark of 154) before winning easily in desperate ground at Aintree 3m 1f. He seemed to be the only runner to give his running in the latter contest but he clocked a smart time, and it’s worth remembering Long Run was beaten in the Paddy Power (off 158) before beating Denman and Kauto Star in the Gold Cup later in the campaign. I like the angle of him coming to the race fresh but you do have to overlook his successive odds-on defeats in three-runner races little more than a year ago.

Official rating: 163. Odds: 20-1.

Finished a distant sixth last year although, in his defence, he suffered an injury that day. Confirmed himself as a leading stayer when landing his second Peter Marsh Chase at Haydock in January, defying a lofty mark of 163. However, he seems to need deep ground to show his best, subsequently being unable to get to grips with Eldorado Allen on better going in the Denman Chase at Newbury last time. His connections will have been delighted with the rain that fell at the track on Wednesday but the times for the races on the chase course on Thursday suggest underfoot conditions are far from attritional (the Ryanair Chase was won in a time just 1sec outside standard).

Official rating: 154. Odds: 50-1.

He had already twice gone close at the Festival before narrowly failing to claw back Al Boum Photo in the Gold Cup two years ago. He’s since struggled to recapture his best, looking a hard ride on occasions, although a change of scenery may have helped to judge by his narrow defeat behind former stablemate Chantry House last time. Will be 4lb worse off this time, though, and no guarantee he will be in such a co-operative mood. One of the few in the field who usually races up at the front of the field, so expect him to be to the fore for a long way.

Official rating: 167. Odds: 12-1.

Took his form to another level in the King George at Kempton on Boxing Day when pouncing from off the pace to spring a 28-1 surprise, but can we trust that form? It looked a case of the race rather falling in his lap and it’s worth remembering that he had been beaten in nine previous Grade One races over hurdles/fences. His three previous runs at the Festival have all ended in defeat, for all that he has never been disgraced.

Cheltenham clerk of the course Jon Pullin is anticipating further drying of the ground ahead of Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup day.

Prestbury Park saw heavy rain throughout racing on Wednesday, turning the ground to soft for the start of racing before officially being changed to heavy midway through the card.

However, Thursday was a dry day at the track with conditions improving to soft and Pullin believes good to soft could feature in the Gold Cup ground update.

He said: “We took the heavy in places out of the official going description and went soft all round after walking the course pre-racing, having found that the areas of heavy ground we had identified the night before had dried out well.

“The jockeys now say it’s getting to be a combination of good to soft and soft and when I update in the morning, I definitely envisage good to soft appearing in the description. Another dry, bright and sunny day is in prospect, with temperatures up to around 14 degrees.”

An intriguing renewal, not least because in the absence of habitual front-runners, we don’t know where the pace is going to come from. A potential average tempo, combined with drying ground, means the emphasis could be on speed. A PLUS TARD is certainly not short of pace and is taken to go one better than last year. He looked better than ever when coasting home in the Betfair Chase on his return before getting mugged by Galvin in the Savills Chase over Christmas, when his trainer’s horses were not firing on all cylinders. As in previous years, he has been kept fresh for the big day. Galvin is most likeable but a peak form A Plus Tard may just have too many gears for him. Defending champ Minella Indo has not been at his best this term but his record at Cheltenham means he has to command respect.