Brian Hughes is aiming to earn a charity a big chunk of cash after choosing an 8/1 shot for a €500 charity bet.
Novibet.ie will donate €4,000 to The Rob Burrow Centre for Motor Neurone Disease Appeal if the champion jockey's top Cheltenham fancy, Into Overdrive, can land the Ultima Handicap Chase at 8/1 on the opening day of the four-day meeting.
Revealing his selection on Novibet.ie’s brand new Champ On Cheltenham podcast, Hughes said: “With the line of form through the likes of L’Homme Presse in the Rehearsal Chase and Sounds Russian in the Rowland Merrick, I think Into Overdrive is going to do it for the North in the Ultima.
“He has the sort of profile that looks just right for this and 8/1 looks very generous. Wendy Hamilton bred the jockey and the horse, so it would be quite some story!
“I’ve been moved by Rob Burrow’s battle with MND. He’s done a fantastic job in raising awareness of the disease and there have already been a few initiatives in racing that have got behind that.
Hopefully Into Overdrive can run a big race and give everyone a little bit extra to cheer at Cheltenham.”
Hughes also suggested Malystic could be another horse from the north of England to watch out for at Prestbury Park.
He added: “In the Grand Annual, Malystic is interesting. I rode him at Cheltenham earlier last year and he boiled over beforehand. He came back and scoped badly, but has then come back and won two good races since, as well as running up the backside of Greaneteen in the Game Spirit at Newbury on ground that I know would have been far too quick for him. He could still be a little bit ahead of the handicapper.”
Hughes went onto to share further insight on the Festival, with fancies in the National Hunt Chase, Arkle and Gold Cup, while the two-time champion jockey can’t see British trainers turning the tide on Ireland this year.
He stated: “I think they should leave the Prestbury Cup trophy in Ireland. There’s no point in paying Ryanair to bring it across! You look at the abundance of talent that was on show at the Dublin Racing Festival, with the strength that Willie Mullins, Gordon Elliott and Henry de Bromhead have, and you can’t see any other outcome that Ireland dominating. The good horses used to be shipped to England from Ireland, but now they’re staying there, and that shows.
“As for the Irish Banker, you’ve got the likes of Facile Vega, El Fabiolo and Delta Work, but the one I really like is Gaillard Du Mesnil in the National Hunt Chase. I just think even money about a horse who’s already performed well twice around Cheltenham is actually good value.
"Punters need to realise that it’s all well and good horses showing form at other tracks, but when you’re looking to gamble on horses at Cheltenham, you want them to have been there and done it.
"You need to know the razzmatazz isn’t going to boil them over. A lot of these horses will have run their races before the tapes go back, but he’s got the experience and I think he’s still a massive price as a good second-season novice in a stayers race.
“In terms of the UK’s most likely winner, apart from Constitution Hill of course, I think Jonbon is the one. I wouldn’t look into his run at Warwick, which was maybe a tad underwhelming, too much, as Nicky [Henderson] will only have one day in mind.
"Without Constitution Hill, you’d say he would have been a good winner of the Supreme, so I think he’s got very strong claims. He’s got to take on El Fabiolo, but he’s got a lack of experience, so Jonbon for me is the British banker.
“There will be shorties beat at Cheltenham this year, as there often is, and I think Delta Work is one of those that looks vulnerable. He’s a talented horse on his day, but he is prone to throwing in an ordinary run. If it’s not him, then there’s certainly question marks over Facile Vega given his last run.
"You can forgive him that, but he certainly wouldn’t be my idea of a banker.
“In the big race on Friday, the Gold Cup, I feel that A Plus Tard is a bit of a forgotten horse. I’m happy to forgive him that Haydock run and expect Henry’s team to have him back firing for this.
"It’s probably my heart ruling my head a little bit, as I’d love to see Henry have a bit of luck given the way their year has gone, but that aside, he’s a horse that’s won and run well in Gold Cups and that often counts for a lot.
"Galopin Des Champs is the one everyone is talking about. He looks like he’s settling better now and he’s jumping nicely, but until he actually goes and takes on the test of the Gold Cup you can’t be sure at the prices.
“Looking at the handicaps, it might be worth having a look at the Irish runners that have finished third or fourth in the top Graded events that are now slipping into handicaps. This year, I think the UK handicapper has been a bit more reasonable with British horses, particularly the novices. Often, a horse will win a novice race well and then get stuffed with a big weight, but I think there’s less of that this year and it could bring the two (UK and Ireland) closer together.”
- You can download and listen to Novibet.ie’s brand new Champ On Cheltenham podcast here.
READ NEXT:
Ireland's Grand Slam novices urged by Johnny Sexton to embrace their golden opportunity
Henry de Bromhead heads to Cheltenham Festival with different outlook following death of son Jack
Dublin can overcome player turnover to make a mark this year, insists Ronan Hayes
Rachael Blackmore hungry for more success as Cheltenham edges closer
Cheltenham Festival Quiz: Test your knowledge of the famous meeting
Get the latest sports headlines straight to your inbox by signing up for free email alerts
