Cheltenham NAPs from the Racing Post tipsters

Racing Post tipsters Keith Melrose, Graeme Rodway and Robbie Wilders have provided their NAPs for the Cheltenham Festival.

Check out our dedicated Cheltenham tips page for more of the best bets.

Cheltenham Festival NAPs

Graeme Rodway's Cheltenham NAP - The New Lion (Turners' Novices Hurdle)

Final Demand will find this test sharp enough on what is likely to be decent ground and the preference is for The New Lion, who has bundles of speed and could be a champion in time.

Trainer Dan Skelton has already gone on record to say that The New Lion is among the best that he has trained at this early stage of his career and he showed enough pace to blow away his rivals in the Grade 1 Challow Hurdle at Newbury over Christmas without being extended.

He produced an excellent time that day, which is all the more impressive considering that Harry Skelton barely moved a muscle, and The New Lion would probably have been able to finish his race off even faster with more vigorous riding.

Leading owner JP McManus doesn’t make many mistakes and quickly snapped up The New Lion for what was probably a pretty penny straight after Newbury.

McManus must see the unbeaten six-year-old as a future Champion Hurdle winner and plenty have won this en route to the Championship race.

Phill Anderson's Cheltenham NAP - Solness (Champion Chase)

I was surprised to see Solness at such a big price for Wednesday's feature race, the Queen Mother Champion Chase.

Jonbon deserves to be a short price after his faultless displays in the Clarence House and Tingle Creek but there’s an argument that Solness should be a lot closer to him in the betting after his performances at Leopardstown this winter.

Joseph O’Brien’s seven-year-old couldn’t get into a rhythm after an early error behind Jonbon in the Tingle Creek but he’s been a revelation since switching to front-running tactics.

A lot has been made of how well Jonbon handles Cheltenham. He’s clearly capable of a smart level of form at the track but I don’t think he’s at his very best going left-handed and Solness may be able to take advantage of any chinks in his armour with what looks like an ideal set-up.

Robbie Wilders' Cheltenham NAP - Wodhooh (Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys' Handicap Hurdle)

A huge gamble on Willie Mullins’ Kopeck De Mee in the Martin Pipe is creating a better price about Wodhooh.

She has the best form in the book and I’m not getting drawn into the hype with the new favourite.

Wodhooh is unbeaten in six starts since embarking on a hurdles career for Gordon Elliott, who loves to target the race that is dedicated to his old mentor and landed it last season with Better Days Ahead. 

The selection has a different profile to that winner who is more of a staying type, but her course-and-distance victory over Joyeuse, Take No Chances and Royale Margaux at the December meeting has worked out phenomenally.

Such is the strength of that display, Elliott even toyed with the idea of supplementing her for the Mares’ Hurdle.

She has an excellent record when fresh and can take this before stepping up to Grade 1 mares’ company later in the season at Punchestown.

This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.

For all information about the festival such as guides, horses and odds, be sure to explore our dedicated hubs. This includes our Cheltenham festival betting hub for odds on every race and our Cheltenham Gold Cup betting odds hub. Maximise your potential winnings with our Cheltenham Super Boosts and other Cheltenham Bonus Offers and Promotions. For expert analysis and predictions on every race, visit our Cheltenham Tips page.