Irish punters are racing to back Rachael Blackmore to create more history at Cheltenham by being crowned top jockey at the festival for the second year running.
It comes as Cheltenham chiefs say they expect crowds of over 260,000 to pack into Prestbury Park for the four days of racing next week.
Excitement is beginning to build amongst Irish fans, with the start of the festival just four days away now.
And leading bookmakers Ladbrokes say punters here have a big fancy for Tipperary woman Rachael Blackmore to enjoy more Cheltenham success.
She made history at the Cheltenham Festival last year by becoming the first woman to be crowned Top Jockey at the meeting and Ladbrokes say the Irish jockey is being backed to make it a double.
Last year Blackmore was chalked up at 14/1 for the crown, but this year Ladbrokes are being much more cautious.
She is now just 7/2 to be the leading festival jockey next week, with just Paul Townend standing in her way at 4/5.
The bookmaker has also opened betting on how many festival winners she will ride.
Last year she made headlines with six winners, and this year it is 7/2 that she clocks up four or more, while two winners is a 2/1 shot.
Nicola McGeady of Ladbrokes said: “Rachael Blackmore has a huge following so it’s no surprise to see punters backing her to be queen of the Cotswolds for a second year in a row.
“With rides such as Honeysuckle and Telmesomethinggirl on her radar,
another big week looks in store for the World Sports Star of the Year.”
Meanwhile, over 250,000 racegoers are expected to descend on Prestbury Park next week for the first Cheltenham Festival with crowds since 2020.
Betting specialists, Sporting Index’s predicted spread suggests 269,000
will be the total across the four-day jump racing bonanza, while the firm also predict the festival-opening Supreme Novices’ Hurdle will jump off just over a minute-and-a-half late.
Neville Burdock, Head of Trading at Sporting Index, said: “The Cheltenham Festival is the most highly anticipated time of year for horse racing fans,
and 269,000 are expected to make the pilgrimage to Jump racing’s HQ across the four days.
“We can’t wait to hear the first Cheltenham roar since 2020, but we might be kept waiting a bit, as we predict the Supreme will begin over a minute-and-a-half-late.
“The biggest winning distance is predicted to be a dominant 17½ lengths,
while we think 115 lengths will separate the winners’ of all 28 races from their rivals, so some breath-taking finishes should be in store.
“We expect favourite-backers to have a better time of it than last year and predict 11 market leaders will go in during the Festival, but those looking for value will be pleased to hear there should be big-priced winners to be found too, and the highest winning SP is likely to be in excess of 40/1.”
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