Top 5 Bets in Cheltenham Festival history

The 2021 Cheltenham Festival is almost upon us. What better time, then to take a look at the biggest, best and most memorable spread betting moments from the last few festivals?

5. Lord Windermere takes Gold
The first Irish Gold Cup winner in 8 years back in 2014, Lord Windermere’s victory – complete with stewards’ inquiry – is one of the more memorable Cheltenham moments this decade.

It was also a great day for punters.

For races with 11 runners or fewer, Spreadex’s Race Index spread sees 1st place receive 50 points, 2nd place receive 25 points and 3rd place get 10 points.

Lord Windermere was at a diddy starting spread of just 3-5 – buy at that price, then, and his shock win left you with 45 times your initial stake. In comparison, his starting fixed odds price was 20/1.

4. Willie finally gets his Cup
Despite his many, many successes at the festival, the Gold Cup long-eluded Willie Mullins, including 6 seconds across the years.

Things changed in 2019, when Paul Townend rode Al Boum Photo to victory (and then did the same again a year later).

Obviously the favourite on his return in 2020, and at 5/2 to secure a 3rd win in 2021, the French-bred horse was only a middling prospect in the year of its first victory, heading into the race at 12/1.

It was also at a Binary spread of 5.8-7.7, with the market making up to 100 in case of a win. That meant spread bettors far outstripped their fixed odds counterparts, picking up 92.3 times their opening stake.

3. Townend scores a hat-trick
The final day of the 2020 festival – and one of the final major events before the pandemic shut sport down over spring and most of summer – saw Paul Townend ride 3 winners in 4 races, helping him secure the Ruby Walsh Top Jockey Award.

That left anyone buying his Jockey SM spread of 24.5-26.5 overjoyed! On each day of the festival, Spreadex awards 25 points for a jockey’s 1st win, 50 points for their 2nd and 75 points for their 3rd, plus a further 10 points for a 2nd place finish.

Leaving Townend with a makeup of 160, those savvy bettors who bought his initial spread came away with 133.5 times their opening bet.

2. It comes to pass
Another pull from Day 4 of last year’s festival, It Came to Pass won the St James’s Place Foxhunter Challenge Cup from an SP of 66/1 – the single biggest win of the festival, and perfect for those punters looking at Spreadex’s Launch! spread.

The market sees the Biggest Winning SP multiplied by the Biggest Winning Distance – here produced by Easyland’s 17-length strut in the Cross Country Chase.

Creating a makeup of 1,122, anyone buying at a starting price of 680-725 picked up a chunky 397 times their original wager.

1. Croco Bay bites bookies
2020’s Launch! makeup was impressive. 2019’s, however, makes it look like chump change.

Matching It Came to Pass’s 66/1 victory was Croco Bay in the Grand Annual – at the time the biggest SP winner for 12 years.

There was another similarity between 2019 and 2020 – like in the latter, the Biggest Winning Distance in the former also came in the Cross Country Chase.

This time, however, Tiger Roll secured victory by 22-lengths, pushing the Launch! makeup to a superior 1,452. Combine that with a lower starting price of 630-650, and you get 802 times your initial stake!