Cheltenham Market Movers From The Weekend

This weekend, like any in the run up to the Cheltenham festival we saw plenty of horses through their names into the hat for the big Grade ones at the festival.

Cilaos Emery for trainer Willie Mullins has been a hard horse to train and keep fit but the seven year old gelding now back to his best this season and stayed unbeaten when winning nicely at Cork on Sunday.

The son of Califet made his seasonal debut at Naas in the Grade Three Poplar Square Chase at the start of September and beat a small field with ease.

He looks to be aimed at the Champion Chase at Cheltenham this year and has to be strongly mix after winning at Cork on Sunday in the Grade Two Hilly Way Chase.

He was 14/1 before that race but at most bookmakers is a best price of 8/1.

There is not much more that needs to be explained about this dual Cheltenham festival winner but now at the age of six Defi Du Seuil looks to have truly come into his own.

The J P McManus owned gelding started his season in the Grade Two Shloer Chase at Cheltenham back in November beating a small field of runners including the likeable grey Politologue.

The Tingle Creek was his first Grade One over two miles and in one of the races of the season he got the job done, just having enough to win by half a length the veteran Un De Sceaux.

With both his runs this season coming over two miles you would have to say the thinking of trainer Philip Hobbs for his horse would be the Champion Chase at Cheltenham.

After his black type win he is now a best price of 4/1 from a previous 8/1.

The final horse from the weekend that took a noticeable move in the market for the Ryanair Chase at the Cheltenham festival was Sunday's John Durkin Memorial Chase winner Min.

The eight year old was returning for his seasonal debut in the contest he took last season and he managed to defend it in style seeing off a late challenge from the Gordon Elliott trained Hardline.

Min has always been a remarkable horse that has wavered in the middle parts of the season previously and if managing to stay on track all the way through the term this time around he has to be taken seriously for the Cheltenham festival.

Two miles four furlongs looks to be his most favoured trip and that is what he will get in the Ryanair Chase which he is now 6/1 from a previous 10/1.