Cheltenham Festival 2023 LIVE results: Day 2 tips, Champion Chase betting on Ladies’ Day
The Cheltenham Festival enters its second day with Energumene and Edwardstone facing off in the day's feature race, the Queen Mother Champion Chase, and you can follow all the action with Mirror Sport here
After a rip-roaring day one, the 2023 Cheltenham Festival continues on Wednesday with plenty more drama in store.
While fans and punters will have their eyes very much on the action, with the Queen Mother Champion Chase the feature race of the day, there’s also the small matter of it being Ladies’ Day. There might not be an obligation to be dressed up in your finest, but thanks to long-time tradition it’s a chance to don your very best outfits at one of the finest racecourses around.
But there is no doubting where the main focus will be and that’s on the racing with the first day of the Festival already providing memorable headlines in Constitution Hill’s remarkable victory in the Champion Hurdle. That was then followed by a fairytale swansong for Honeysuckle and Rachael Blackmore in the Mares' Hurdle.
Attention now turns to the Champion Chase, set for 3.30pm on Wednesday, as defending champion Energumene faces six rivals looking to take his crown. The Irish hopeful for Willie Mullins shone last year but Alan King’s horse Edwardstone could also make history.
Victory here would make this excellent jumper just the eighth horse since we entered the current millennium to win the Arkle/Champion Chase double. It looks to be a perfectly matched battle between Britain and Ireland.
There is also plenty more action with the likes of the Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle and the Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase taking place.
To follow all the action make sure to stay with us here at Mirror Sport and follow the blog below.
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Shark taking on the big fish
Shark Hanlon is taking on the big fish with horse of a lifetime Hewick confident he can make a big splash in the Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup if he gets his optimum ground conditions.
Hewick, who famously cost his trainer £800, has become a cult horse, taking Hanlon, a big character but relative minnow in Irish racing, to places he would never have dreamt.
Since travelling to Sedgefield to win the Durham National in October 2021, the eight-year-old has landed the Bet365 Gold Cup, Galway Plate and the American Grand National, for which he won an Eclipse Award as 2022’s outstanding chaser in the US.
Newsboy's day two tips
Edwardstone is expected to add the Queen Mother Champion Chase to last year’s emphatic Arkle Challenge Trophy triumph to prove himself the best two-mile chaser in Britain and Ireland.
His four-and-a-quarter-length romp at the 2022 Festival was the high point of an impressive rookie campaign over the larger obstacles, and Alan King’s nine-year-old made a taking return to action in the Grade 1 Tingle Creek Chase at Sandown Park at the start of December, streaking to a nine-length supremacy over Greaneteen , with Funambule Sivola , a 40-1 second in the Champion Chase 12 months ago, last of the sextet.
A great win for Honeysuckle
There were emotional scenes at Cheltenham when queen of the jumps Honeysuckle ended her reign with victory in the Close Brothers Mares’ Hurdle on the final start of her career.
Jockey Rachael Blackmore, trainer Henry de Bromhead and owner Kenny Alexander were in tears after the superstar mare delivered the most popular victory on day one of the Cheltenham Festival.
Back in September De Bromhead and wife Heather were mourning the loss of their 13-year-old son Jack who died in a tragic pony riding accident.
And there was a huge outpouring of joy, relief and sadness as Honeysuckle returned to a packed parade ring after clinching her fourth victory at the Festival.
Sad news on Tuesday
The 2023 Cheltenham Festival reported a tragic fatality on day one of the meeting as Malinello suffered an injury in the Wellchild National Hunt Challenge Cup.
The Ben Pauling-trained eight-year-old, who was a 125-1 chance ridden by Gina Andrews, took a heavy fall at the 16th fence of the 3m5f race.
Following the conclusion of the final contest it was sadly confirmed that Malinello passed away, despite the best efforts of Cheltenham’s veterinary team. A racecourse spokesperson said: “Sadly Malinello sustained an injury in the final race of the day.
“He was attended to by the on-course veterinary team and assessed immediately, but very sadly passed away. Our thoughts are with all his connections.”
Wednesday's races
- 1:30pm - Ballymore Novices' Hurdle
- 2:10pm - Brown Advisory Novices' Chase
- 2:50pm - Coral Cup
- 3:30pm - Queen Mother Champion Chase
- 4:10pm - Cross Country Chase
- 4:50pm - Grand Annual Chase
- 5:30pm - Champion Bumper
Welcome to day two!
What a start to Cheltenham yesterday and today promises to be another fantastic day of racing.
Constitution Hill and Honeysuckle grabbed the headlines on Tuesday but whose turn will it be to steal the show on the second day of the 2023 Festival.
Today's bumper race is of course the Champion Chase as Energumene goes in search of back-to-back race victories.
There are seven races on Wednesday's card and we will be bringing you all the build-up, race action, results and plenty more over the course of the day.
