AS many punters found out at Prestbury Park last week, the Cheltenham Festival always comes with the potential to be unpredictable. And however tough it is to find winners on the day itself, nominating fancies a whole year away from the biggest four days in National Hunt racing is probably asking for trouble.

Nevertheless, here are three runners who could turn out to be contenders at double-figure prices. A glance at the current ante-post listings for the 2026 Festival sees plenty of runners already chalked up at skimpy enough odds, given all that has to go right (and can go wrong!) between now and then.