Cheltenham Festival 2026 Review: Winners, Upsets & Highlights

Day 1: Champion Day (Tuesday 10 March)

Champion Hurdle: Lossiemouth

The Champion Hurdle was always going to be Lossiemouth's race once Constitution Hill switched to the Flat and Sir Gino's fractured pelvis ruled him out. But winning at 7/5 favourite at Cheltenham is never a formality, and Paul Townend gave a masterclass in front-running to make it look straightforward.

She travelled well from the off, quickened between the last two flights, and won with more in hand than the margins suggested. Willie Mullins now has eight Champion Hurdle wins. Rich Ricci, who also owns Gaelic Warrior, had his first.

Supreme Novices' Hurdle: Old Park Star

Old Park Star justified favouritism in the Supreme, winning tidily from a well-fancied Irish rival. The form looks solid for a novice hurdle. He could be a big player over fences next season.

Arkle Challenge Trophy: Kargese

Kargese gave her connections a first Arkle win, jumping cleanly throughout and pulling away from the last. A two-mile chaser to follow through the spring and into next season.

Betting verdict: The Champion Hurdle favourite landed for most punters. The Supreme and Arkle went to market leaders as well. Day 1 was kind to short-price backers. The handicap races were trickier.

Day 2: Ladies Day (Wednesday 11 March)

Queen Mother Champion Chase: Il Etait Temps

Il Etait Temps took the Queen Mother Champion Chase in a race run at the sort of pace that tests jumping as much as speed. He travelled strongly, jumped the last two fences cleanly, and held his rivals by a comfortable margin. A high-class two-mile chaser at his best.

Grand Annual: Martator at 66/1

Martator's 66/1 win in the Grand Annual Handicap Chase was the result of the week. A horse with no obvious form in this company, in a race where the first four home were all available at double-figure odds. If you backed him, you either did serious homework or got very lucky, and the Grand Annual often rewards both.

The result served as a reminder that Cheltenham handicaps are genuinely unpredictable. Course form matters, the weights matter, the going matters, and even then, a 66/1 shot can land.

Other Wednesday results

The Ballymore Novices' Hurdle and Brown Advisory Novices' Chase both produced market-friendly results, with the Irish-trained principals running to their pre-race billing. The Coral Cup, as expected, went to a mid-price handicapper who had been quietly building a case through the winter.

Betting verdict: A tough day unless you had Martator somewhere in a lucky dip. The Grade 1 novice races were straightforward; the handicaps less so. Day 2 split punters cleanly between those who backed the feature races and those who went hunting value in the handicaps.

Day 3: St Patrick's Thursday (Thursday 12 March)

Stayers' Hurdle: Home By The Lee at 33/1

Home By The Lee winning the Stayers' Hurdle at 33/1 was the second big handicap shock of the week, except this wasn't a handicap, it was a Grade 1. A 33/1 shot winning the Paddy Power Stayers' Hurdle is the kind of result that only happens at Cheltenham, where the peculiarities of the track, the pace, and the day can conspire against even the most deserving favourite.

Home By The Lee had the stamina but few expected him to have the class. He did, and it will be fascinating to see where connections aim him next.

Ryanair Chase: Heart Wood

Heart Wood confirmed himself as one of the best staying chasers in training with a clear-cut Ryanair win. He jumped well throughout, travelled into contention turning in, and won with authority. At 2 miles 4 furlongs, the Ryanair suits a different type than the Gold Cup, and Heart Wood looks tailor-made for it.

Triumph Hurdle: Apolon De Charnie at 50/1

Three big-priced winners across the four days, and the third came in the Triumph Hurdle, the juvenile championship. Apolon De Charnie at 50/1 rounded off St Patrick's Thursday in memorable fashion for the small number of punters who had him onside.

The Triumph is often the most unpredictable race of the week. Juveniles running at Cheltenham for the first time, over different ground than their prep races, in a big field, it regularly throws up a surprise.

Betting verdict: Brutal for anyone not on Home By The Lee or Apolon De Charnie. The Ryanair was easier to navigate. Thursday handed the biggest losses of the week to punters who had staked heavily on the Stayers' market leaders.

Day 4: Gold Cup Day (Friday 13 March)

Gold Cup: Gaelic Warrior by 8 lengths

Gaelic Warrior didn't just win the 2026 Gold Cup. He rendered the race one-sided by the time the leaders reached the top of the hill for the final time.

Paul Townend sent him to the front after the fourth last, and from that point the race was over. He jumped the last two fences with the assurance of a horse who knew exactly what was required, crossed the line 8 lengths clear, and cantered back to the winner's enclosure to a reception that confirmed just how impressive the performance was.

Jango Baie finished second, finding a different gear from the rest but never threatening to close the gap. Inothewayurthinkin, the defending champion, ran his race in third, he's shown that he belongs at this level, but the Gold Cup this year had a winner in a different class.

For the full Gold Cup analysis, see our Gold Cup 2026 result piece.

Albert Bartlett Novices' Hurdle

The Albert Bartlett, which often identifies a future Gold Cup horse, produced a convincing winner who stays three miles and handles Cheltenham's undulations well. One for the notebook for next season's staying chases.

The Rich Ricci double

When Lossiemouth won on Tuesday and Gaelic Warrior won on Friday, Rich Ricci became the first owner in Cheltenham history to win both the Champion Hurdle and the Gold Cup in the same season. It's a record that may stand for decades, the two races attract different types of horse, and finding one owner with a genuine contender in both in the same year is rare enough. Winning them both is something else entirely.

Betting verdict: Gold Cup day rewarded the ante-post players who backed Gaelic Warrior early. He had been available at bigger prices before drifting to 11/4 joint-favourite on the day. The eight-length margin exceeded most expectations.

Key themes from the 2026 Festival

Willie Mullins' dominance

Mullins dominated the winners' list. He's been the leading Festival trainer for several years now, and 2026 confirmed that the gap between him and his rivals is not closing. The volume of quality horses he sends from Ireland is simply unmatched.

The handicaps punished everyone

Three winners at 33/1 or bigger across the four days. Martator (66/1), Home By The Lee (33/1), Apolon De Charnie (50/1). If you backed all three Festival handicap shock winners and nobody else, you still had a productive week. The Cheltenham Festival is the best place in the world to watch top-class racing, it's also one of the hardest places in the world to make money from betting, and 2026 underlined exactly why.

Paul Townend's week

Two championship wins from the front. Lossiemouth and Gaelic Warrior couldn't be more different as horses (one a nimble hurdler, one a powerhouse Gold Cup chaser) but Townend handled both to perfection. He's operating at a level that puts him among the best National Hunt jockeys of any era.

What now?

Gaelic Warrior's connections are expected to put him away for the season after such an emphatic Gold Cup. Lossiemouth has options, she may well reappear at Punchestown in late April. The next big fixture for the UK jumping scene is the Grand National meeting at Aintree, which opens on 2 April. For horses from this Festival that could make their presence felt at Aintree, see our Cheltenham to Aintree guide.

FAQ

Who won the 2026 Cheltenham Gold Cup? Gaelic Warrior, trained by Willie Mullins and ridden by Paul Townend, won by 8 lengths at 11/4 joint-favourite. Jango Baie was second and Inothewayurthinkin third.

Who won the 2026 Champion Hurdle? Lossiemouth, also trained by Willie Mullins and ridden by Paul Townend, won at 7/5 favourite.

What was the biggest shock of the 2026 Festival? Martator at 66/1 in the Grand Annual Handicap Chase was the biggest-priced winner. Home By The Lee (33/1, Stayers' Hurdle) and Apolon De Charnie (50/1, Triumph Hurdle) also produced major upsets.

Did Rich Ricci make history at Cheltenham 2026? Yes. Rich Ricci became the first owner to win both the Champion Hurdle and the Gold Cup in the same season, through Lossiemouth and Gaelic Warrior respectively.

Where can I find more detail on the Gold Cup result? See our dedicated Cheltenham Gold Cup 2026 result article for a full race analysis and what it means for Gaelic Warrior's future.

What's next after Cheltenham? The Grand National meeting at Aintree follows on 2-4 April 2026, with the Grand National itself on Saturday 4 April. See our Grand National 2026 preview and our Cheltenham to Aintree guide for what to watch.

Where to bet on UK racing: see our bookmaker reviews and offers for the current welcome offers, Best Odds Guaranteed coverage, and each-way terms ahead of upcoming UK + Irish racing.

Sources & verification

Race details, dates, prize money and trends in this piece were cross-checked against:

• Racing Post: race archive + form database
• Sporting Life: race cards and results
• Wikipedia: long-run historical data

[Source: cross-referenced as of the lastUpdated date in this article's meta.yaml.]