The Best UK Hopes at the 2022 Cheltenham Festival

The 2022 Cheltenham Festival is on the horizon, and the festival is known as the biggest event in UK horse racing. Each year, we see runners from the UK taking on the best that Ireland has to offer, and if you look back to last season, the Irish dominating proceedings, winning 23 of the 28 races on offer.

Can the UK respond and get into double figures this season? Leading the way is Shishkin, trained by Nicky Henderson and currently the 4/6 favourite for the Champion Chase, one of the four championship races at the meeting. He is fancied by many and features heavily in the Cheltenham Festival tips that are being made, which has led him to be seen as the UK banker of the meeting by many.

One big positive for Shishkin is that he has recently beaten his closest rival, who is the Willie Mullins trained Irish runner Energumene. The pair clashed at Ascot, with Shishkin cementing his place as the best two mile chaser that is currently in training. That race took place at the end of January and acted as the preparation run for them both as they head to the festival and is the most recent piece of form in the book.

While Shishkin is the main hope for the championship races, what about elsewhere? Here are more UK runners to look out for during Cheltenham week.

Day One Could See UK Runners Shine

There are seven races on each day of the festival, and if the UK is to do well in 2022, winners on the first day must happen. The first two races on the card have UK-based favourites, and these runners are two of the strongest chances of the week.

Kicking things off in the Supreme Novice Hurdle, Constitution Hill, a stablemate of Shishkin at the Nicky Henderson yard, will be hoping to get the UK team off to a flying start. Constitution Hill shot to the head of the market after an impressive Tolworth Hurdle win at the start of 2022 and has shown enough ability to think he can really make up into a special horse in the future.

Right after, in the second race on the card, another strong UK fancy will go to post when

Edwardstone runs in the Arkle Chase. He is another run that is currently favourite, and has been for some time, with trainer Alan King pinning his festival hopes on this runner.

If we are to see the UK fight back, and compete against Irish runners during Cheltenham week, the first day of the four-day meeting is going to be key. The UK simply has to start well and get on the board early. Although Shishkin on day two is the one horse seen as the banker of the meeting, on day one, both Constitution Hill and Edwardstone appear to have great chances of winning.

While these three runners are not the only chances of the week, their success, or failure, could certainly help shape it.