Our experts find the early value for the 2026 Cheltenham Festival read the trade paper’s headline Monday morning. After last week, would you really want to be getting stuck in again, 360 days ahead of the big event?

Did anyone see Jimmy Du Seuil returning after 313 days away from the track to back up last year’s Gallagher Novices second to Ballyburn? Golden Ace? Marine Nationale, Bob Olinger coming back?

The best online comment I saw in the Cheltenham aftermath was

Jim@RacingJim92 You go into a coma New Years Eve and when you wake up, they say

Salvator Mundi..Majborough..Sir Gino..Constituition Hill..Brighterdaysahead..State Man..Ballyburn..Dancing City..Jonbon..Gaelic Warrior..El Fabiolo..Sixandahalf..Teahupoo..Galopin Des Champs… All failed to win at the festival, you'd think they'd gone mad. Indeed!

What was wonderful was the range of winners.

Yes, the big spenders got success, McManus, Robcour, the Caldwell Potter group of owners were satisfied.

Kopek Des Bordes’ win for owners with few horses but very vocal fans of the sport.

Golden Ace was a winner from humble beginnings and a yard that could not have dreamed to house a Champion Hurdle winner.

Rachael Blackmore returning in triumph, back after a pretty miserable season. Henry de Bromhead likewise.

Cromwell conquering Britain, two winners and a total of eight in the frame was a marvellous achievement and he stepped up to second on the top trainers list.

For Gordon Elliott to travel vainly in hope all week and finally getting a winner, in the Martin Pipe Hurdle, then emotion plain to see.

We saw how much a winner meant to Caldwell Potter’s connections, similar to Gordon Elliott. Who will ever see a man again cry after winning the Martin Pipe!

The build-up was all overshadowed by the death of Michael O’Sullivan in who the Supreme was run in memory of and the emotion was evident immediately from Paul Townend’s winning interview.

That Marine Nationale should come back two years after he and Michael won the Supreme to win the Champion and followed by his other 2023 winner Jazzy Matty also on the scoreboard meant so much and it was difficult not to think here was another hand taking over.

It continued over the third and fourth day. The betting on leading riders was predictable even if Rachael briefly led after Thursday.

But that Jonjo O’Neill Jnr got on the winners’ board was rare, and after winning on Jagwar, not many knew the Michael O’Sullivan connection until that interview

His second ever winner at the Festival, O’Neill said: ”I actually wore his Cork flag in this race as I felt I needed a little bit of luck. I said a couple of prayers to Michael last night and this morning, just for a hand, and he’s really come up trumps.”

For then get a call to ride a Willie Mullins ‘no-hoper’ (is there such a thing) in the Triumph, and for that horse to come and beat one of the favourites at 100/1, it simply could not have been written and someone had an extra hand in it from afar.

He was the leading British rider at the Festival. Unbelievable.

It’s likely Lossiemouth lost her best chance of winning the Champion Hurdle

The two-year plan, mentioned because after winning the Triumph Hurdle at four, it was considered a big ask to put Lossiemouth into the Champion Hurlde at five, came to nothing as she was switched at the final weekend to the Mares Hurdle again, which she duly won impressively, perhaps even more so than last season.

Who was the villain? Willie for saying all year, even after the DRF fall that she would run in then Champion? Or Rich Ricci, who in the aftermath of her win said they: “Did the right thing by the horse.”

Lossiemouth shrugged off any doubts on her well being following that fall. And as the Champion turned out, she just had to stand up to win it. If State Man worked better than her in the final workouts, might she not have been able to step up on that on the track. Such things happen regularly and she looked in excellent form in her win. She’d have been short odds to beat Golden Ace,

Annie Power ran in the Mares in her second season hurdling after trying the Stayers Hurdle. She crashed at the last with the race at her mercy. Was it Karma that the divine said well done Rich, after the Mares Hurdle but then ha….look what you missed after the Champion Hurdle?

Going forward, the problem is the same scenario could crop up next year. She might not work well. What then? State Man may be back, Constitution Hill like wise.

And, where as this year the two top Festival novices from last season went chasing, this time Kopek Des Bordes and The New Lion look lively Champion Hurdle contenders. Paul Townend might pick Kopek Des Bordes if he progresses.

It’s likely Lossiemouth lost her best chance of winning the Champion Hurdle because connections chickened out.

It’s stating the obvious, you know that right? Beware of novice chasers who impress with their jumping at the Dublin track. Jockeys might say it’s a great spin down the far side over six fences in a row, but it’s flat and straight, Cheltenham, from the water onwards, is a much sterner test of a horse’s jumping. Both Majborough and Ballyburn, who had not been foot perfect at the DRF, were caught out on the big day.

Solness too had a solo run in his two Grade 1s at Leopardstown but found Cheltenham a much tougher task.

“We bought him in October, schooled him and gave him a break. We said we’d better drag him in from the field and get him ready for Cheltenham, and that’s what we did.” Willie Mullins said after winning the Triumph with never raced over hurdles Poniros.

It was a bit of a snub to those arguing the way to beat the French-breds is to have more three-year-old hurdle races.

Kopek was French bred but came though the Irish way as did Jasmin De Vaux who was a three-year-old store purchase by the Crawfords. The New Lion did not see a racecourse until he was five. He’s hardly at a disadvantage.

Oh yes they will…

Majborough was the best horse in the Arkle and so nearly won despite almost stopping following his second last fence error. It’s not hard to see him gain compensation – and as Sir Gino has to recover from his illness.

Oh no they won’t…

Ballyburn

There were doubts about his jumping from the beginning and he is the latest to prove the believe that top hurdlers do not automatically become top chasers. He just loses half a length at most fences and that won’t do at the top level.

Constitution Hill

The jury is out here. The repeated tendency to go long at a hurdle finally caught him out after similar jumps at Kempton and Cheltenham this season. He’s good enough and young enough to come back next season – Hurricane Fly won his second Champion at nine. Rooster Booster was also a good winner at nine.

It might be crazy but I would love to see him over a fence while still in his prime. He has point-to-pointing schooling as a young horse. Try him over a fence, that he will respect more. If he jumps well – go for the Champion Chase next year!

Jonbon

Difficult one, still no Festival win, a new crop of novices coming along and he’ll be 10 next year. I felt his error was as much to do with his rider asking too much (remember the second last in the Tingle Creek?) but it looks a tough task even though the Ryanair must be his likely target in 2026.

Galopin Des Champs

The dual Gold Cup champion went out on his sword, a credit to all, he never runs a bad race. But he was never travelling as comfortably as he can. He dismissed Fact To File in two Leopardstown runs but that horse may join Inothewayurthinkin as rivals next year, even if at 10, and on softer going, Galopin could still be a leading contender.

The walk in starts have been the norm for many years now and many Festival but I never seen so many messy ones in a long time. Where does the blame lie?

Gavin Cromwell made an interesting observation on RacingTV on Sunday that the starter may not have been used to having such big fields to get under orders in Britain.

Certainly, there were starts that looked ok to let go, the Ultima, especially when it was a three mile race. And it was a shame Maughreen’s owners never got a chance to compete.

But the riders seemed to be approaching too fast too often. Nico de Boinville’s complaints over the Champion Chase start but it was a case of what did you expect if you stand your horse right on the tape. There were nine horses in the race, plenty of room at the start and no need to be plonked on the tape.

Both sides need to show more respect and a bit of cop on.

The scenes after the champion hunter chase win by Wonderwall surely said these connections and those from the point-to-pointing fields deserve a race on the biggest meeting of the year.

Amateurs were not allowed in the National Hunt Chase, having just two chances of a winner this year. I heard some pundit say this was right.

But why? And remember, the biggest howler of the week was made by a professional – Sean Flanagan in the Cross Country on Vanillier.

The changes to the programme were positive. No Grade 1 Turners intermediate novice chase, it wasn’t missed, the novice handicap still attracted good horses and a good winner. Remember A Plus Tard won the old novices handicap chase before ending up a Gold Cup winner. Similarly, the National Hunt Chase as a handicap was fine – 18 and 19 runners in each. The Cross-County still saw a winning favourite despite being a handicap. It was fair to all.

The first two-day attendances were down by 4,600 and 4,800 respectively from 2023. The Thursday was down a staggering 11,800 from 2020, the year Covid hit. The cost of accommodation is the big problem, since people are easily prepared to pay around €100 for a few hours concert ticket.

A three-day meeting was called for in some cases but would people on track enjoy a crammed three days?

Would we really want this? We would need to drop seven races.

The Mares races will come under scrutiny. The Mares Hurdle again took a leading contender from the hurdling championship – in needs a change, for all that a graded Mares-only hurdle should be at the Festival.

The Mares Chase is not a race I feel is needed with a limited amount of mares going over fences, the better hurdlers may remain over hurdles before going to stud or the best chasers who do become chasers will go for the Grade 1 championships. The Fred Winter and the Bumper may also be races that could be dropped. When thinking about it, do we need a Grade 1 flat race at the home of jumping? The Ryanair gets grief but I feel it’s place is justified, most of those who run in it have run in the Champion Chase or Gold Cup previously and hopefully Fact To File goes to the Gold Cup next year. It's still difficult to get rid of seven.

So that was Festival 2025. For all the negatives, it was still a wonderful week!