Cross Country Chase

by Darren Brett
Spot Thedifference won the first running of the cross country at the 2005 meeting, finished runner up in 2006 and finished fourth in 2007. Upon his retirement he had won on seven occasions over the cross country fences at Cheltenham!


Partial view of the Cross Country course on Cheltenham Festival Day One 2012

Cross Country Chase Trends

7/8	were trained in Ireland (and 23 of the last 28 placed horses!)
7/8	were aged nine or older
7/8	had won over at least three miles
6/8	carried no more than 10st 13lbs
5/8	had won one of its last two starts
5/8	had previously won a cross country race

Cross Country Analysis

The Cross Country Chase is approaching its tenth year at the Festival and the race could be hitting a turning point with an apparent improvement in the quality of horse now taking its chance in the race.

With the likes of top trainers Willie Mullins and Philip Hobbs now targeting this race we are seeing a different type of chaser take on the demands of this most unusual course and as such some of the previous trends are starting to come under question.

For the first five years it appeared that coming into the race in good form was an essential criteria as was winning form in a cross country race. However, the last three winners have all gone against the grain in these areas but it must still be preferable to side with a horse with proven cross country form.

Watch out for the winner of the PP Hogan Cross Country Chase at Punchestown in February as the winner there has gone on to win this race at Cheltenham in three of the last eight years.

Cross Country Chase Last Nine Winners

Table below shows the last nine winners of the race, their age/weight at the time of winning, trainer, jockey and odds (starting price).

Year	Horse	Age/Wgt	Trainer	Jockey	Price
2013	Big Shu	8-10-5	P Maher	B Cash	14/1
2012	Balthazar King	8-10-9	P Hobbs	R Johnson	11/2
2011	Sizing Australia	9-10-9	H De Bromhead	A E Lynch	13/2
2010	A New Story	12-9-7	M Hourigan	AP Heskin	25/1
2009	Garde Champetre	10-11-12	E Bolger	Miss N Carberry	7/2
2008	Garde Champetre	9-10-13	E Bolger	Miss N Carberry	4/1
2007	Heads On The Ground	10-10-2	E Bolger	Miss N Carberry	5/2F
2006	Native Jack	12-10-8	P Rothwell	D Russell	7/2F
2005	Spot Thedifference	12-11-12	E Bolger	Mr J T McNamara	4/1

Cross Country Chase Preview

Enda Bolger’s early domination of this race could now be under threat as the master of the Cross Country race has not won this race since 2009 after winning four of the first five renewals.

More of the high profile trainers are now actively targeting this race so it will be interesting to see if Bolger can regain the winning thread.

Cross Country Chase Tips

JP McManus owned horses have won 50% of all the runnings of this race and the cross country is undoubtedly one of the races that the legendary owner targets at the Festival.

Watch out for our tip for the 2014 Cross Country Chase nearer the race

Cross Country Odds

Click the bookmaker logo next to the horse you want to back to get the best odds.