Hi everyone, it’s Jane here and I can’t even begin to tell you how excited I am now that Cheltenham is finally here! If you’ve ever met me in person, you’ll know that I’m a massive jumps racing fan and this is just about as good as it gets.

It’s not just the racing, but the betting as well. Over the past few years, Champion Day, the first day of the festival, has seen the punters really stick it to the bookies as a whole host of big favourites have romped home. Fingers crossed for more of the same this time.

So here are the betting offers for the first day of the Cheltenham Festival, plus live odds, race schedule and some tips on how to use the offers to your advantage and maximise your winnings!

These races will take place on Tuesday 10th March.

Cheltenham Day 1 Betting Offers

As always, the LBO team have our contacts in all the online bookies on standby all week. That’s how we’re able to get inside information about all the latest deals before anyone else. And as soon as we do, they immediately get published here.

Some of these offers are very limited, and it’s first come first served. So if you want to find out what’s on offer before the rest of the punters, you need to keep an eye on this page throughout the day.

For Cheltenham free bets and other offers spanning the entire festival, visit our Cheltenham betting offers page.

Feature Races

Champion Day at Cheltenham is the perfect start to an amazing event, and if you ask me every single race today is special in its own way. You wouldn’t want to miss a second of the action, and evryone has their favourites. But here are the highlights in terms of both prize money and betting activity.

The Arkle

This Grade 1 Novices’ Chase has been dominated by Walsh / Mullins in recent years, helping themselves to the £175,000 prize money. Punters who’ve noticed this and followed the race trends have also been cleaning up at the bookies’ expense. Several big firms have taken an absolute hammering on the first day recently. There have been some big winning margins involved as well.

Champion Hurdle

Definitely the biggest race of the day in terms of betting volume and also the value of the race itself, with £450,000 for the winner. You might not be able to match that unless you’re a very high roller, but this is still another race that’s normally punter friendly in terms of recent results.

The Grade 1 Champion Hurdle is the third leg in hurdling’s “Triple Crown” which is open to 4 year olds and above. There are only 8 hurdles in the 2 mile race, and fewer hazards give the best horses a chance to assert their dominance. The heavily backed Buveur D’Air has won back to back races in recent years, to the delight of racegoers. Watch the market for indicators of who’s likely to win this.

Cheltenham Day 1 Race Schedule & Times

1.30 – Supreme Novices’ Hurdle (2m 1/2f)
2.10 – The Arkle Challenge Trophy Steeple Chase (2m)
2.50 – Ultima Handicap Chase (3m 1/2f)
3.30 – Champion Hurdle Challenge Trophy (2m 1/2f)
4.10 – Mares’ Hurdle (for the David Nicholson Trophy) (2m 4f)
4.50 – National Hunt Chase (4m)
5.30 – National Hunt Cup (2m 4 1/2 f)

Cheltenham Day 1 Preview

The highlights of the Day 1 card are the Champion Hurdle at 15.30, and the opening race, the Supreme Novices Hurdle. But there are many other great races to look forward to.

But how do you pick the winners? Well if in doubt, we normally ask the experts.