Ben Linfoot's Cheltenham Tips for ITV
The Verdict tips: Thursday March 16
1pt e.w. Level Neverending in 2.10 Cheltenham at 33/1 (Coral, Ladbrokes 1/5 1,2,3,4,5,6)
1pt e.w. Fury Road in 2.50 Cheltenham at 11/1 (Unibet, bet365 1/5 1,2,3)
1pt win Gold Tweet in 3.30 Cheltenham at 10/1 (General)
1pt e.w. Embittered in 4.10 Cheltenham at 33/1 (Unibet, Betfred 1/5 1,2,3,4,5,6)
French fancy in Stayers’ Hurdle
Day three of the Cheltenham Festival and the Paddy Power Stayers’ Hurdle looks the most wide-open of the championship races with any number of possible winners.
However, I’m not sure it’s as deep a renewal as 11/1 odds about Gabriel Leenders’ GOLD TWEET suggest and he's worth backing to maintain the good record of runners from the Cleeve Hurdle in this race.
Nine Cleeve Hurdle runners have won the Stayers’ Hurdle this century, with five of them doing the double, and there was no fluke about Gold Tweet’s comfortable three-length win at Cheltenham in soft ground on Trials Day.
He travelled incredibly strongly throughout that race and while going a moderate gallop might’ve helped him, it could well be the case that they don’t go very quick once again.
Dashel Drasher is in there once again to make the running, along with dual winner Flooring Porter, but I can’t see them going hard in the conditions and in that scenario Gold Tweet can outspeed a bunch of stayers like he did last time.
At double-figure prices he’s been underestimated as the French bid to win the race for the first time since the legendary Baracouda in 2003.
The Verdict: Back GOLD TWEET in the Stayers' Hurdle at 10/1
Level up in Pertemps for Elliott
Earlier on, LEVEL NEVERENDING looks the each-way bet of the week in the Pertemps Network Handicap Hurdle Final for Gordon Elliott.
The six-year-old is lightly-raced after just eight starts over hurdles and though he has hung in the past he’s getting more straightforward these days and he ran an eye-catching race in the qualifier at Warwick last time.
Thursday’s jockey Sam Ewing rode him hands and heels for third to ensure he qualified in the same race Third Wind came out of before winning at the Festival last year.
Elliott also used the same qualifier for Sire Du Berlais, running him in cheekpieces at Warwick before changing to blinkers at Cheltenham when he won his second Pertemps.
The same headgear switch is employed with Level Neverending and Elliott has also struck gold with first-time blinkers before in a Festival handicap hurdle thanks to Flaxen Flare.
Elliott has four in the race as he bids to win the Pertemps for the fourth time in six years and this horse was his first to qualify this season as he left forming his challenge for the race quite late.
Level Neverending will love the ground and the test of stamina, while he runs off 2lb lower than his Warwick third which gives him a great each-way chance at 33/1.
The Verdict: Back Level Neverending each-way in Pertemps Final at 33/1
Ryanair boss on the Road to glory
A big conundrum for punters on day three is whether to be with or against Shishkin in the Ryanair Chase.
If he's at his best, like he was at Ascot last time, I don’t think they'll see which way he goes, but at odds-on he’s opened up the market for an each-way bet against him and FURY ROAD looks underestimated at 11/1.
The Gigginstown horse put in a career-best performance last time out in the Irish Gold Cup at the Dublin Racing Festival, where he gave Galopin Des Champs at least a bit of a scare when he was still in front heading to the last.
He jumped to his left and weakened as he got tired after that, but it was a mighty effort and one that very much suggested he’ll be a real force to be reckoned with dropped in trip to 2m5f.
Davy Russell seems to get on well with him – he was beaten a neck in an Albert Bartlett on him as a novice hurdler – and he rode him for the first time in almost three years at Leopardstown when he ran such a big race.
I don’t know if he can beat Shishkin, but at 11/1 I'm happy to have an each-way bet and find out.
Either way, Michael O’Leary could be celebrating later on when EMBITTERED takes his chance for Joseph O’Brien in the Magners Plate Handicap Chase (4.10).
This horse has built up quite a useful bank of Festival form after finishing third in a County Hurdle (when giving 9lb to winner Saint Roi) and then seventh in heavy ground in last year’s Grand Annual (he fell in the same race when going easily the year before).
All of those races were over two miles but he looks well worth another crack at this intermediate trip again having tried it just once before, his rallying head second to Big Debates (won again since) over the extended two at Cork in November strongly suggesting this step up in trip will be a positive.
Kept fresh for a spring campaign, he won’t mind the conditions and looks an each-way bet at 33s.
The Verdict: Back FURY ROAD and EMBITTERED in the Ryanair and Magners Plate
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