Cheltenham Festival 2026 - Day 4 (Gold Cup Day) Overview

Friday 13 March 2026 is day 4 of the Cheltenham Festival so let’s hope the Western superstition doesn’t strike at the festival.

Gold Cup Friday will follow the usual format of seven races that kicks off at 13:20pm. There will be another fantastic day of high quality racing but all eyes will be drawn to the feature race at 4pm - THE GOLD CUP 2026.

The Gold Cup will be the focus of both the punters and the bookies, meaning you’re likely to see plenty of promotions from the bookies. With odds boosts and extra places, Matched Betting at Cheltenham could be quite profitable.

Cheltenham 2026 Day 4 Race Schedule

1:20pm – The JCB Triumph Hurdle (Grade 1)

The schedule on the last day of the festival kicks off with the JCB Triumph Hurdle.

This race is seen as the most reputable race of the jumps season for this class of horses. The Triumph Hurdle is specifically for 4 year old novice hurdlers to showcase their skills for the future.

Four previous Triumph Hurdle runners have gone on to win the Champion Hurdle race. In addition to this, Triumph Hurdle winner in 2014, Tiger Roll, went on to win the Grand National in 2018 and 2019.

We expect to see a fast paced race and there’s plenty of potential for errors due to inexperienced competitors. It’s also worth keeping an eye on entries from Willie Mullins who has won this race for the last four years and Nicky Henderson who has the best record in the history of the race.

2:00pm – The William Hill County Handicap Hurdle (Premier Handicap)

Until 2009, this race was the final race of the Cheltenham Festival and was known as the “getting out stakes” as it was the last chance for fans to pick a winner.

The race is run over 2 miles and the horses will take on 8 hurdles in order to win the £61,897 prize pot. You can expect this race to be incredibly competitive and unpredictable with a large field of runners.

Don’t be shocked to see a high odds outsider cause an upset in this race. In the last five years, two winners have crossed the line first at odds of 33/1 (Belfast Banter and Faivoir.

Trainers, Dan Skelton and Willie Mullins have dominated the success in this race for the last ten years so it might be worth keeping that in mind when making your selections.

2:40pm – The Mrs Paddy Power Mares’ Steeple Chase (Grade 2)

On to the third race of the festival’s final day - the Mares’ Chase. This is one of the newer Cheltenham Festival races having been introduced in 2021.

It hasn’t taken long for the top trainers to add this as a key grade 2 race. The race is run over a distance of an extended 2 miles with a gruelling 17 obstacles.

Open to horses aged five or older, and as you may have guessed from the race name, this race is restricted to mares only.

The Mares’ Chase is a key race within the mares’ chasing schedule. It provides the opportunity for high-class females to hit targets without having to battle against the geldings in the Champion Chase.

3:20pm – The Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle (Grade 1)

The Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle, also known as the ‘Spa Novices’ Hurdle has been part of the festival for 20 years now.

It’s considered to be one of the most demanding races at the Cheltenham Festival covering a distance of 3 miles. Aimed at staying novice hurdlers of 5 years and older, this race has produced future stars of Stayers’ Hurdles and the Gold Cup.

You can expect to see a large field for this race and don’t be shocked to see an upset as outsiders tend to run well in this event. Classy novices tend to struggle a little with this race and are quite often outfought by the hardened types.

In fact, only a handful of favourites have won this race since it started. In the last ten years, the winners of this race have crossed the line at odds of between 14/1 and 50/1.

4:00pm – The Boodles Gold Cup Steeple Chase (Grade 1) – The Feature Race

And we move on to the pinnacle of the entire festival, the Cheltenham Gold Cup. The most distinguished race in jump racing and is only second to the Grand National in terms of value with the winner receiving just under £352,000.

The Gold Cup is covered in a rich history with the first Gold Cup taking place in 1819 as a flat race. In 1924, was the first time it was run as a steeple chase and has produced some absolute greats such as Best Mate, Arkle and Huato Star.

This race is a grueller covering a distance of over 3 miles with 22 tough fences. Horses must be 5 years or older and within certain weight ranges (depending on their age).

With a rolling surface and the famous Cheltenham Hill finish, this will be a real test of jumping ability and stamina. It’s rare for big priced outsiders to win the Gold Cup.

We expect a lot of money to go on Jango Baie, The Jukebox Man and two times previous winner, Galopin Des Champs.

4:40pm – The Festival Challenge Cup Open Hunters’ Steeple Chase

The Penultimate race on the final day of the festival is the Challenge Cup, also known as the St James’s Place Hunters’ Chase. This is also a premium race for amateur jockeys so is sometimes referred to as the Amateur Gold Cup.

This event is open to horses aged 5+ that have performed at a high level in point-to-point races or finished first or second in two hunter chases..

Runners will cover the same track and distance as the Gold Cup race. It’s well known for fierce competition with competitive fields. In the last five years, only one favourite has won with two 66/1 winners.

5:20pm – The Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys Handicap Hurdle

The 2026 Cheltenham Festival concludes with the Martin Pipe Handicap Hurdle. Named after Martin Pipe who was a champion trainer an incredible 15 times and had 34 winners at the Cheltenham Festival.

Only conditional jockeys are able to enter this fixture. Conditional Jockeys are full-time professionals at the beginning of their career that are able to claim a weight allowance until they win 75 races.

Run over a distance of 2m and 4.5f, this race requires both stamina and speed to tackle the 10 hurdles ahead of them. History suggests this race is suited to younger horses with the last 5 winners being aged 5 or 6. You should also expect a strong presence of Irish entries for this race.

Matched Betting at Cheltenham - Why Day 4 Matters

On day 4 of the festival, there’s at least two races where you can expect the unexpected and an outsider might surprise us. This could be true of the Novices’ Hurdle and the Hunters Chase.

With races like these and the large field races, it might be worth looking at race places instead of relying on an outright winner. You can gain more insights to betting at the festival and tips specifically for matched bettors in our Guide to Cheltenham 2026.