Home Magazine 2022 Cheltenham Festival Queen Mother Champion Steeplechase Betting Guide

2022 Cheltenham Festival Queen Mother Champion Steeplechase Betting Guide

If you are one for the Ladies-Day at the Cheltenham Festival then look no further than the headliner on the seven-race card on the 16th March. The Queen Mother Champion Steeplechase will be under starter’s orders at 15:30 GMT.

The famous Prestbury Park will receive around 65,000 visitors on the day to roar on the horses in one of the most talked about races in the national hunt season and around the world. The Cheltenham Festival spans four days starting from the 15 March and running until 18 March with 28 races, 14 of which are grade one standard. Other world renown races during the event include the Champion Hurdle, the Ryanair Steeplechase and the legendary Gold Cup.

The Cheltenham Queen Mother Champion Steeplechase 2022

Day two of the Cheltenham Festival is recognised as Ladies Day and what better lady than the Queen Mother to name this race after. The Queen Mother had a love for jump racing and was keen on supporting the sport at every opportunity. The Queen Mother also owned her own National Hunt horses, one of which, named Game Spirit, was runner up of this very race in 1976. However, it was in 1980 that the race became known as the Queen Mother Champion Steeple Chase. The inaugural race was called the National Hunt Two-Mile Chase run in 1959.

Within the National Hunt Steeplechase Calendar this race goes down as a leading grade one minimum chase. This year the race will take place on the second day of the Cheltenham Festival, 16 March at 15:30 GMT. With twelve fences to jump this 2-mile race is open to horses of 5 years of age or older. Sometimes with a small field of horses, the short length of the race means it is fast paced and run flat out. This year sees a total purse of £400,000 being distributed with the winner taking home £225,000. As the race draws nearer we at mr.play will take a closer look at some of the featured entries that have a chance of claiming victory.

Featured Runners at the Cheltenham Queen Mother Champion Steeplechase 2022

Shishkin

A career of 12 races and a healthy 11 wins, remaining unbeaten over fences. Shishkin has previously won the 2020 Supreme Novices Hurdle beating the likes of Chantry House and Abacadabras, not to mention the 2021 Arkle Challenge Trophy Novices. Shishkin seems to like the Cheltenham Festival and this time takes another step up running the Queen Mother Champion Chase. Two runs either side of the new year have brought wins in the grade two Desert Orchid Chase, easily beating Greaneteen by 10 lengths. This was followed by a more impressive win in January at Ascot in the grade one Clarence House Chase beating Energumene by one length. Is this Irish 8-year-old bay gelding the next Altior for Nicky Henderson?

Energumene

This will be the first outing at Cheltenham for Energumene in a career of 9 races and seven wins. Taken over on the run in at Ascot in January, Energumene ended one length down to Shishkin in the grade one Clarence House Chase. In December Energumene raced to a win in a small field by eight and a half lengths in a grade two race at Cork. This is a French bred 8-year-old brown gelding trained by Willie Mullins.

Chacun Pour Soi

Chacun Pour Soi was entered into the Queen Mother Champion Chase in 2021 and raced enthusiastically with strong jumping. Leading the race after the last hurdle he succumbed to the Cheltenham Hill and finished third, one and a half lengths behind Put The Kettle On while Nube Negra finished second. More recently at Sandown in December in the grade one Tingle Creek, Chacun Pour Soi had one to forget, easing up and finishing last in a small field of six, 34 lengths down from the winner Greaneteen. A marked improvement was seen in February in Leopardstown with an easy win in the grade one Dublin Chase coming in 12 lengths clear of Dunvegan, Captain Guiness and Greaneteen. Based on this the ageing 10-year-old needs to prove he can travel.

Nube Negra

Trained by Dan Skelton, Nube Negra is an 8-year-old French brown gelding. Like Chacun Pour Soi, Nube Negra did not perform in the grade one Tingle Creek at Sandown in December. A better race was run last November at Cheltenham grade 2 Shloer Chase beating Politologue by six lengths with Put The Kettle also running that race. Despite this indifferent racing form, let’s not forget that Nube Negra was second to only Put The Kettle by half a length in the Queen Mother Champion Chase last year. Seems he likes Cheltenham.

Envoi Allen

An 8-year-old French brown gelding trained by Henry De Bromhead, Envoi Allen has 16 races and 13 wins to his name. With three races this national hunt season two have resulted in wins and the other a sixth-place finish, beaten by 8-and-three-quarter lengths by Alloha at Puchestown in the grade one John Durkan Memorial Chase. Other notable finishers ahead of Envoi Allen in that race included Tornado Flyer and Fakir D’Oudairies. Last time out at the Cheltenham Festival Envoi Allen fell at the fourth in the grade one Marsh Novices Chase.

Greaneteen

A fourth-place finish in last year’s Queen Mother Champion Chase two lengths behind Put The Kettle On. A poor recent showing in February at Leopardstown coming last although post-race the vet reported a graze to the left hind stifle. On a brighter note a win at Sandown in December at the Tingle Creek Chase saw Greaneteen come out ahead of the likes of Hitman, Captain Guiness, Nube Negra and Chacun Pour Soi in a field of five. Inconsistency belies this horse, but on his day this French 8-year-old gelding can go well.

Put The Kettle On

A famous victory last year in the Queen Mother Champion Steeplechase placed Put The Kettle On in the history books. An 8-year-old bay mare with nine wins over nineteen runs throughout her career. Not showing any form during this National Hunt season, will Put The Kettle on get the feeling back and a second wind when revisiting Cheltenham to try and reclaim her crown?