This is it! After all the months of build-up, the 2026 Cheltenham Festival is upon us.

While the big meeting has lost most than its fair share of stars to injury, what we are left with is a particularly competitive four days in the context of what the event has tended to look like in the last decade or so.

There won’t be as many odds-on favourites to bet big for those that are that way inclined, but those of us that tend to play at bigger prices will be very well catered to as always. Remember, this meeting is a marathon not a sprint. Let’s hope this column can be in front when the finishing line comes at the end of Friday.

The Singer Arkle Challenge Trophy Novices’ Chase (2.00) will be the first big head-to-head clash of the week with the best novice chaser in Britain in LULAMBA taking on most talked-about novice chaser in Ireland in Kopek Des Bordes.

This really is a tale of contrasting preparations as Lulamba has hit every marker this season. He has had three runs over fences all resulting in comfortable victories at the line, but it was his latest success in the Game Spirit Chase at Newbury that really put the cherry on top.

Pitched into open company on disadvantageous terms, he had a very educational experience and overcame some adversity to ultimately put away his opposition with loads to spare. He will arrive to this race as a rounded, well-educated young chaser with a very high level of form to his name. What isn’t there to like?

Yet, Lulamba isn’t even the favourite.

That position is held by the Willie Mullins-trained Kopek Des Bordes. The six-year-old overcame clumsy jumping to establish himself as one of the best novice hurdlers in training last season, winning the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at this meeting. His novice chasing career has been much anticipated and there was loads to like about his impressive winning chasing debut at Navan all the way back in November.

While he looked quite loose and without a plan on his approach to fences, he jumped them all with great athleticism. My conclusion after was that he would benefit from even more experience as the season progressed, but a mid-season setback has meant that he hasn’t been seen in a race since.

Facing into the Arkle off one run over fences isn’t without historical precedent, but it really isn’t ideal for one that has a loose and slightly erratic way about him. Anyone with functional ears will have heard about the racecourse schooling he has participated in that was seemingly impressive enough to see him backed into his current position of favouritism, but his price really does look short.

As you might have guessed by now, there is only one price-focused way to go here in my book and that is with Lulamba. It goes without saying that Kopek Des Bordes is very much feared, but Lulamba has the best form, has had the best preparation and is the better price of the two. He is my selection.

The last 20 years have been tough for British National Hunt racing. They have seen Irish-trained success in Britain explode to unprecedented levels that have seen them come to dominate the biggest National Hunt meeting of them all.

However, in amongst the green wash, one stubborn British bulldog has stood strong and proud, the Trustmarque Ultima Handicap Chase (3.20). Not since the memorable win of the Tony Martin-trained Dun Doire all the way back in 2006 has an Irish-trained horse managed to win this race.

It has become somewhat self-perpetuating, as not that many Irish-trained runners take part in it each year, but wider analysis of how Irish-trained horses have been treated in the handicap chases at this meeting demonstrates the task that the Irish face in handicap chases at the meeting.

So, with all that in mind I’m siding with the home team in the shape of the Jonjo & AJ O’Neill-trained JOHNNYWHO. For me, the nine-year-old was one of the most unfortunate losers of the entire Cheltenham Festival last year when pipped by a neck in the Kim Muir Challenge Cup.

Heavily backed on the day, he got to the front travelling very well indeed at the second-last fence, but that’s a long way from home in a handicap chase at this meeting and having made an error at the final fence, he was agonisingly outdone by Daily Present with a huge gap back to the third home.

Since then, he has produced a couple of eye-catching and commendable performances in defeat, but knowing his connections, they will have been focused on this meeting for quite some time. He has had a breathing operation since his last run, and one can be sure that he will be ready to make a bold bid for compensation.

This is a stronger contest that the Kim Muir and he is 6lb higher than he was last year, but that is all built into his current price. While his powerful owner looks to have even stronger claims in the race, it wouldn’t surprise if Johnnywho comes to the fore on the day.

The main event of the day is the Unibet Champion Hurdle Challenge Trophy (4.00). The race has taken a relentless kicking in terms of losing star players over the course of the season, with State Man, Sir Gino and Constitution Hill all having fallen by the wayside. Mercifully, the best hurdling mares have rightfully been pointed in this direction rather than taking the softer option of the Mares’ Hurdle and the Champion Hurdle really does need them.

Even with them, there is a no question this is a below-average renewal of the race on paper and that it could have been further stripped of quality by the connections of those mares making the very legitimate call to seize lower-hanging fruit in the Mares’ Hurdle means that the conversation about the conditions of the latter race has to remain a priority.

Cases can be made for so many of these, but as always it has to come back to what the currently available prices. For me, the Gordon Elliott-trained BRIGHTERDAYSAHEAD is the one. The market is penalising her very heavily for her two previous defeats at this meeting, but there wasn’t a lot wrong with what she did when second to Golden Ace when giving her 5lbs in a very tactical renewal of the Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle and she came back with a physical issue after a poor run in the Champion Hurdle last year.

In my view, the key to Brighterdaysahead to make use of her and drag the others into deep water. I thought Gordon might run Casheldale Lad to help push the pace, but in his absence, there are still a couple of potential pace pushers in Tutti Quanti and Workahead.

Whatever leads, I don’t expect Brighterdaysahead to be far away and I could see Jack Kennedy looking to pour on the coals early in the closing stages to get some of his rivals on the stretch. To me, she is too big a price and represents very fair value at present.

KEVIN BLAKE’S BEST BETS

2.00 CHELTENHAM, TUESDAY – SINGER ARKLE CHALLENGE TROPHY NOVICES’ CHASE

LULAMBA

3.20 CHELTENHAM, TUESDAY – TRUSTMARQUE ULTIMA HANDICAP CHASE

JOHNNYWHO

4.00 CHELTENHAM, TUESDAY – UNIBET CHAMPION HURDLE CHALLENGE TROPHY

BRIGHTERDAYSAHEAD