Ryanair Chase betting with William Hill

The Ryanair Chase is a Grade 1 race over 2m5f at the Cheltenham Festival in March. It was introduced in 2005 as a championship race, in part for horses that didn’t stay the Cheltenham Gold Cup distance.

The Ryanair is one of two Grade 1 races on the third day of the Festival, along with the Stayers’ Hurdle. Notable previous winners of the Ryanair Chase include Imperial Commander (2009), Cue Card (2013), Un De Sceaux (2017) and Frodon (2019).

Ryanair Chase betting tips

Most Ryanair Chase winners had raced within the previous two months. Previous Cheltenham form is a good guide to finding the winner for your Ryanair Chase bets. Almost all previous winners had won at least once at Cheltenham in the past.

Many Ryanair winners had won at least twice over hurdles before going chasing. A very high percentage were winners of at least one Graded race and had winning form over 2m4f. An official rating of 160 or higher is usually required to win this race.

Paul Nicholls trained the inaugural winner with Thisthatandtother in 2005. Taranis followed in 2007 and he became the leading trainer in the race when Frodon won in 2019. Frodon was the sixth successive Ryanair Chase winner to be bred in France.

Ryanair Chase betting trends

It’s worth noting any Irish raiders in the Ryanair Chase odds. They’ve dominated in recent renewals, winning five of the last six – four of those trained by Willie Mullins.

Recently, seven-year-olds are the ones to focus on. They’ve won six of the last nine runnings, while no 10-year-old has won since Albertas Run doubled up in 2011.

Horses can arrive at Prestbury Park after running in a variety of races. Before winning this, Frodon won the Cotswold Chase over a longer trip, while others had previously been successful in the Clarence House Chase and Ascot Chase.

And when you’re looking at the Ryanair Chase odds, it’s worth knowing that nine of the winners have been from the first two in the market, so those fancied runners tend to do well.

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Ryanair Chase ante-post betting pointers

The key trial races to consider for your Ryanair Chase betting tips are the Ascot Chase and the King George VI Chase. Cue Card and Riverside Theatre both won the Ascot Chase prior to their success in the Ryanair. Riverside Theatre was repeating his Ascot victory of 12 months earlier, despite having not raced since.

Vautour was runner-up in the King George at Kempton and dropped back in distance to win this race. Frodon, winner of the Cotswold Chase at Cheltenham in 2019, also successfully reverted to this shorter trip. He had won the Caspian Caviar Gold Cup here earlier in the season.

Aintree is the next objective for most Ryanair Chase winners. Our Vic (2008) won the Bowl Chase, but Riverside Theatre (2012) and Dynaste (2014) were both beaten in the same race. Albertas Run won the Melling Chase at Aintree in 2010 and finished runner-up the following season.

The Melling Chase was also the target for Cue Card (second in 2013), Vautour (faller in 2016) and Balko Des Flos (fourth in 2018). Many Ryanair winners returned in the same Festival race the following year, but Imperial Commander (first) and Cue Card (fell) ran in the Cheltenham Gold Cup.

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Ryanair Chase history and memorable winners

The Ryanair Chase was one of several races added to the Cheltenham Festival in 2005 when the meeting was extended to four days. It replaced the Cathcart Challenge Cup, which had been restricted to second-season chasers. The Ryanair Chase is open to five-year-olds and upwards and has proved a great success, acquiring Grade 1 status in 2008.

Imperial Commander won the Ryanair Chase in 2009 for Nigel Twiston-Davies and Paddy Brennan. The following season he won the Betfair Chase and the Cheltenham Gold Cup, defeating Kauto Star and Denman in the process.

The 2010 Gold Cup had been billed as a clash between the two Paul Nicholls-trained horses. Two-time Gold Cup winner Kauto Star made an early mistake and eventually crashed out, while Denman could not repel Imperial Commander.

Trainer Colin Tizzard decided to run Cue Card here in 2013, rather than take on Sprinter Sacre in the Queen Mother Champion Chase.

The move paid off with an all-the-way nine-length win. In the 2015/16 season, Cue Card won the Betfair Chase and the King George VI Chase. He stood to win the £1 million bonus if he could win the Cheltenham Gold Cup, but fell at the third-last fence.

Uxizandre provided Tony McCoy with his last ever Cheltenham Festival winner in the 2015 Ryanair Chase. McCoy sent him straight to the front and was never headed, eventually beating Ma Filleule by five lengths.

It was the 31st Festival winner for the 20-time champion jockey, who retired with 4,348 National Hunt winners to his name.

Vautour was a brilliant winner in 2017, trained by Willie Mullins and ridden by Ruby Walsh. He was one of the strongest Ryanair Chase tips in the history of the race and started even-money favourite.

Mullins and Walsh teamed up successfully again the following year with Un De Sceaux.

Ryanair Chase betting 2021

The Ryanair Chase is one of two Championship races held on St Patrick’s Thursday at the Cheltenham Festival in March. It holds Grade 1 status after being upgraded in 2008.

The runners line up on the New Course to tackle an intermediate trip of an extended 2m4½f and jump 17 fences. So, it’s a race for horses that might find the Champion Chase too quick and the Gold Cup distance too far.

It acts as an appetiser just before the Stayers’ Hurdle, but there’s still usually plenty of talent on show.

Nicholls eventually stuck with the original plan and his decision was vindicated. Frodon was headed by 33/1 outsider Aso at the second last, but battled back bravely to win by a length and a quarter.

Nicholls may face a similar predicament in 2021, particularly if the ground is not too testing.

Plans for 2022 for rising star Cyrname also remain fluid after his brilliant win in the 2019 Ascot Chase. He easily defeated a top-class field, which included Waiting Patiently and Politologue. That followed an equally impressive victory in a valuable handicap at the same course.

If he proves equally effective on left-handed tracks, he will be a leading contender in one of the championship races.

Nicky Henderson’s Janika ran two fine races in defeat over this course in 2019. He was denied on both occasions by the progressive Siruh Du Lac but was conceding plenty of weight. He has the right sort of profile for Ryanair Chase tips and looks one to follow in 2022.

A Plus Tard also caught the eye at the Cheltenham Festival, storming clear to win the Close Brothers Novices’ Handicap Chase by 16 lengths. That was only his fourth race over fences and he certainly looks to have a future in top-grade chases.

It’s had several notable winners in the past like Albertas Run, Cue Card, Vautour and Frodon. And, in 2021, Allaho added his name to the honours board. He set a furious gallop and put in a spectacular round of jumping.

Willie Mullins’ charge is the ante-post favourite in the 2022 Ryanair Chase betting.

Bet on the Ryanair Chase