The Cheltenham Festival is the most famous meeting in all of National Hunt racing. For four days in the middle week of March, the best hurdlers and chasers from all corners of the globe travel to Cheltenham racecourse in Gloucestershire, England, with the dream of becoming a Cheltenham Festival winner.
We'll have every race covered with in-depth Cheltenham Festival tips, through the card selections for each of the four days, and information about the best free bets and offers you can use during "the greatest show on turf".
2022 Cheltenham Festival Dates
The 2022 Cheltenham Festival will kick off with Champions' Day on Tuesday 15th March. Ladies Day follows, before St Patrick's Day Thursday. The fourth and final afternoon at the Cheltenham Festival is Gold Cup day, which will take place on Friday 18th March, 2022.
In 1860, a new jumps meeting called the Grand National Hunt Meeting took place at Market Harborough. Over the next 40 years, this Festival was moved between different locations around the country.
In 1910, improvements were made to Prestbury Park racecourse in Gloucestershire. The meeting was staged in Cheltenham for the fifth time, and organisers decided it would remain at Prestbury Park for the foreseeable future.
Thus, the Cheltenham Festival was born and it quickly become one of the most popular sporting events in Britain.
The oldest Championship race at the Cheltenham Festival is the Stayers’ Hurdle, which was created in 1912. The Cheltenham Gold Cup was initially a lead-up race to the County Hurdle, which was the feature race on day four. In 1924, the Gold Cup was promoted to Grade One status and soon transformed into the most important race of the week.
Three years later, the Champion Hurdle was introduced to the Cheltenham Festival. It wasn’t until 1957 that the Champion Chase was added to the schedule.
For much of its existence, the Cheltenham Festival was a three-day event, kicking off on Wednesday before culminating on the Friday. In 2005, organisers added a fourth day to the schedule. Although there has been talk of adding a fifth day in recent years, the Cheltenham Festival remains a four-day meeting, each featuring a seven-strong racecard.
In 1943 and 1944, the Cheltenham Festival was cancelled due to World War II. In 2001, the national foot-and-mouth disease crisis saw the meeting cancelled for the first time since 1944.
All of National Hunt racing’s most famous names have won during the Cheltenham Festival. The leading trainer is Willie Mullins, who leapt to the head of a list which includes Nicky Henderson, Paul Nicholls and Martin Pipe when he claimed the Top Trainer prize for the sixth time in 2019.
Ruby Walsh is the most successful jockey in the history of the Cheltenham Festival, having won at the meeting on 32 occasions during his illustrious career. AP McCoy sits second on the list, ahead of Barry Geraghty, and Richard Johnson.
Willie Mullins’ Quevega holds the record for most wins by a horse at the Cheltenham Festival, having won the Mares’ Hurdle for six years in succession between 2009 and 2014.
The previous record was held by Golden Miller, who had won the Gold Cup five years in a row in the 1930s. Two-time Grand National winner, Tiger Roll has won four Cheltenham Festival races during his career so far, securing wins in the Triumph Hurdle, the National Hunt Chase and two victories in the Cross Country Chase.
At the 2021 Cheltenham Festival, a Grade Two Mares’ Chase will be introduced to the day two schedule. There’s currently been no confirmation as to which race will be taken out, but it’s thought that the Boodles Juvenile Handicap Hurdle will be the one to make way for this feature chase for mares.
2022 Cheltenham Festival FAQs
When is the 2022 Cheltenham Festival?
The 2022 Cheltenham Festival will start on Tuesday 15th March, and end on Friday 18th March.
What races are run during the Cheltenham Festival?
There will be 28 races run during the 2022 Cheltenham Festival, the most prestigious of which being the Cheltenham Gold Cup. Other notable races include the Champion Hurdle, the Queen Mother Champion Chase and the Stayers' Hurdle.
Who won the Gold Cup?
In 2021, Minella Indo defeated stablemate A Plus Tard and Al Boum Photo as Henry De Bromhead celebrated a 1-2 in the Gold Cup.
Where can I watch the Cheltenham Festival?
The first five races on all four days will be shown live on ITV Racing. You can watch every race live on RacingTV. Visit our Live Streaming page if you want to watch the action via you mobile or laptop.
