Cheltenham Festival 2024 Race Cards & Entries

Day one of the Cheltenham Festival will take place on Tuesday 12th March. This day is usually referred to as ‘Champions Day’, mainly due to the feature race that takes place later in the day. With this in mind, let’s take a look at the Cheltenham race schedule for day one of the Festival:

Race One: The Sky Bet Supreme Novices’ Hurdle (13:30)

This is the first race on the Cheltenham Festival race card. When this race gets underway, there’s always a large cheer from the crowd, which is affectionately known as the ‘Cheltenham Roar’.
This race is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race that is open to horses aged four years and over. It’s run on the Old Course over two miles and half a furlong.

Race Two: The My Pension Expert Arkle Challenge Trophy Novices’ Chase (14:10)

This is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase that is open to horses five years or older. The race takes place over a distance of about two miles and features 13 fences.

Race Three: The Ultima Handicap Chase (14:50)

The Ultima Handicap Chase, also known as the Festival Trophy Handicap Chase, is the first Premier Handicap National Hunt steeplechase of the Festival and is only open to horses aged five and older. It is run on the Old Course over a distance of three miles and one furlong. Each of the Cheltenham entries for this race must successfully negotiate 20 fences.

Race Four: The Unibet Champion Hurdle Challenge Trophy (15:30)

The main race on day one of the Cheltenham Festival is the Champion Hurdle. It is only open to horses aged four years or older and is sponsored by Unibet. Run over a distance of two miles and half a furlong, it features just eight hurdles.

Race Five: The Close Brothers Mares’ Hurdle (16:10)

Following the Champion Hurdle, the Mares’ Hurdle takes place. This Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race is only open to mares aged four or older. Run on the Old Course, it takes place over a distance of two miles and four furlongs. During the race, there are 10 hurdles to be jumped. The registered title of this race is the David Nicholson Mares' Hurdle.

Race Six: The Boodles Juvenile Handicap Hurdle (16:50)

The Boodles Juvenile Handicap Hurdle, also known as the Fred Winter Juvenile Novices’ Handicap Hurdle, takes place on the Old Course at the Cheltenham Festival.
The race is run over a distance of just over two miles and features a conservative eight hurdles to jump. It is a handicap race that’s strictly for four-year-olds.

Race Seven: The Maureen Mullins National Hunt Novices’ Chase (17.30)

The last race on day one is the National Hunt Chase. This is the first Grade 2 race of the day and it is open to amateur riders and horses aged five years and older. With a distance of three miles and about six furlongs as well as 23 fences to be jumped, it is also the longest race of the day.

Looking for specific tips for day one of the Cheltenham Festival? You’re in luck. We’re offering Cheltenham Festival day one tips over on our dedicated tips page.

Usually remembered for being Ladies Day, day two of the Cheltenham Festival offers some extremely interesting racing, including the Queen Mother Champion Chase.

Race One: The Gallagher Novices’ Hurdle (13:30)

The opening race on Ladies Day is the Baring Bingham Novices’ Hurdle, which is officially known as the Gallagher Novices’ Hurdle for sponsorship purposes (that said, many racing fans know it by its old name, the Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle). This is an exciting Grade 1 National Hunt hurdles race that is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run over a distance of two miles and five furlongs. In total, it features 10 hurdles.

Race Two: The Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase (14:10)

Race two of day two is the Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase (formerly the RSA Novices’ Chase). This is a three-mile long race that is open to horses that are five years old or older. This Grade 1 National Hunt Chase takes place on the Old Course and features 20 fences.

Race Three: The Coral Cup Handicap Hurdle (14:50)

The Coral Cup is a Premier Handicap National Hunt hurdle race that is run over a two mile and five-furlong track on the Old Course. This race is open to horses aged four and over and it features 10 hurdles.

Race Four: The Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase (15:30)

The Queen Mother Champion Chase is one of the most prestigious races on the National Hunt calendar. It is run over two miles on the Old Course and features 13 fences.

Race Five: The Glenfarclas Chase (16:10)

The Glenfarclas Chase, which is also known as the Cross Country Chase, is only open to horses aged five years or older. It is run on the cross-country course over a distance of three miles and six furlongs. In addition to the impressive length of this race, there are 32 obstacles that the horses must clear.

Race Six: The Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Challenge Cup Handicap Chase (16:50)

The Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Challenge Cup Handicap Chase is a Premier Handicap National Hunt Steeplechase that is open to horses aged five years or older. Often known simply as the Grand Annual Chase, it is run on the Old Course over a distance of about two miles and features 14 fences.

Race Seven: The Weatherbys Champion Bumper (17:30)

Bringing the second day of the Cheltenham Festival to a close is the Champion Bumper, a Grade 1 National Hunt flat race that is only open to horses in the age range of four to six years old. This is the most prestigious flat race in the National Hunt calendar and it is run over a distance of two miles and about half a furlong.

Looking for tips? Head over to our bets and tips for day 2 of the Cheltenham Festival page.

Day three of the Cheltenham Festival in 2024 coincides with St Patrick’s Day. Although the Friday of the Festival gets a lot of the attention because it features the Gold Cup, the Thursday is packed with top-class racing and arguably has two feature races: The Ryanair Chase and the Stayers’ Hurdle.

Race One: The Turners Novices’ Chase (13:30)

Day three of Cheltenham kicks off with the Turners Novices’ Chase, a Grade 1 National Hunt race that is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run on the New Course and features 17 fences over a distance of two miles and four furlongs.

Race Two: The Pertemps Network Final Handicap Hurdle (14:10)

Next up on day three is the Pertemps Network Final Handicap Hurdle, which is a Premier Handicap National Hunt race. Run over about three miles on the New Course, it features 12 hurdles for competitors to deal with along the way. The purse for this race last year was £100,000 and it is only open to horses aged five and over.

Race Three: The Ryanair Chase (14:50)

Next we see the Ryanair Chase, which has been a Grade 1 event since 2008. Again only open to horses aged five years and older, this race has an impressive purse of £375,000 up for grabs. During the race, competitors must navigate 17 fences as they make their way around the two miles and four and a half furlong track.

Race Four: The Paddy Power Stayers’ Hurdle (15:30)

The Stayers’ Hurdle is the leading long-distance hurdle event in the National Hunt calendar. Run over a distance of about three miles, horses that manage to place in this race get access to the £325,000 purse on offer.

Race Five: The TrustATrader Plate Handicap Chase (16:10)

A Premier Handicap event, the TrustATrader Plate Handicap Chase runs on the New Course and features 17 fences.

Race Six: The Ryanair Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle (16:50)

The second to last race of day three is the Ryanair Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle, which is also known as the Dawn Run Mares' Novices' Hurdle. This particular race is run on the New Course over a distance of two miles and one furlong. It features just eight hurdles.

Race Seven: The Fulke Walwyn Kim Muir Challenge Cup Amateur Jockeys’ Handicap Chase (17:30)

Closing out the second to last day is the Fulke Walwyn Kim Muir Challenge Cup. This race features 21 fences and is held over a distance of three miles and two furlongs.

You can find all of our tips for day 3 at the Cheltenham Festival over on our dedicated tips page.

Friday is the fourth and final day of the Cheltenham Festival. The highlight here (and the highlight of the entire Festival) is the Cheltenham Gold Cup. This ranks among the UK and Ireland’s biggest and most hotly-contested races.

Race One: The JCB Triumph Hurdle (13:30)

Opening the final day of the Festival is the JCB Triumph Hurdle. This is a relatively short race at two miles and one furlong. During the race, the horses must navigate a total of eight hurdles.

Race Two: The County Handicap Hurdle (14:10)

The County Handicap Hurdle also takes over a distance of just over two miles. It’s open to horses aged five and older and, like the previous race, there are eight hurdles on the track.

Race Three: The Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle (14.50)

The third race of the day sees Grade 1 horses aged four and over step up for the Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle (also known as the Spa Novices’ Hurdle). Featuring 12 hurdles over a distance of around three miles, the race is only open to novice hurdlers.

Race Four: The Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup Chase (15:30)

The Gold Cup is the main feature race at the Cheltenham Festival. With a purse of £625,000 up for grabs, this is the race that all trainers, jockeys and owners want to win.
This steeplechase open to horses five years and older is run over the distance of three miles and two and a half furlongs. The winner must successfully navigate 22 fences.

Race Five: The St. James’s Place Festival Challenge Cup Open Hunters' Chase (16:10)

The St. James's Place Festival Hunters' Chase is only open to amateur riders on horses aged five and older. It is run on the exact same course as the Gold Cup, meaning there are also 22 fences over the distance. For this reason, it’s sometimes also referred to as the ‘amateur Gold Cup’.

Race Six: The Mrs Paddy Power Mares' Chase (16:50)

The Mrs Paddy Power Mares’ Steeplechase, also known as the Liberthine Mares' Chase, is a Grade 2 National Hunt chase that is open to mares aged five or older. It’s run on the New Course over a distance of about two miles and 4½ furlongs. The mares taking part in this race must also jump 17 fences.

Race Seven: The Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle (17:30)

The very final race on the Cheltenham Festival race card is the Martin Pipe Hurdle, which features conditional jockeys. This race is only open to horses aged four or older and is run over a distance of about two miles and 4½ furlongs.

The Cheltenham Festival is the highlight of the jump racing season. However, here at The Winners Enclosure, we follow all of the action all-year-round.

So, if you’re ever visiting Cheltenham Racecourse for a meeting, be sure to analyse all of the Cheltenham fixtures with us. It doesn't matter if you’re attending at the start of the jumps season, heading to the course for Trials Day or attending on Gold Cup day, we have a great selection of tips for all of the Cheltenham racing fixtures.

If you're looking for more information on today's and tomorrow's race cards as well as our tips, then look no further:

TODAY'S RACECARD - CHELTENHAM FESTIVAL 2024

TOMORROW'S RACECARD - CHELTENHAM FESTIVAL 2024