Cheltenham Festival 2026: Lossiemouth entry reshapes opening-day betting markets
Tuesday at 9: 00 a. m. ET — Racegoers, bookmakers and trainers face a reshaped opening-day picture at the Cheltenham Festival 2026 after Willie Mullins confirmed Lossiemouth will run in the Unibet Champion Hurdle, pushing market leaderboards and strategies to change before the feature.
Cheltenham Festival 2026: Paddy Power makes Lossiemouth 15/8 favourite, punters react
Paddy Power has installed Lossiemouth as their 15/8 favourite for the Unibet Champion Hurdle, with The New Lion priced at 9/4 and Brighterdaysahead next at 5/1, shifting the betting landscape for connections and punters ahead of the race. Those prices set new benchmarks for stakes and liability on the opening day.
Willie Mullins confirms Lossiemouth entry, team opts for Champion Hurdle
Willie Mullins confirmed that Lossiemouth will run in Tuesday’s Unibet Champion Hurdle after discussions with owner Rich Ricci; the mare had the alternative option of the Close Brothers Mares’ Hurdle but connections chose the Champion Hurdle target. Mullins said she will travel over to England and will wear cheekpieces for the race.
Dan Skelton’s The New Lion and other contenders line up for the Unibet Champion Hurdle
Dan Skelton’s The New Lion headlines nine confirmations for the Unibet Champion Hurdle and remains a leading rival despite a fall in the Fighting Fifth and a hard-fought International Hurdle later in the season. Golden Ace, last year’s winner, and the supplemented Tutti Quanti — added at a cost of £18, 000 — are also among the entries completing an open-looking field for the day one feature on March 10.
Elsewhere on Tuesday, the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle confirmation list includes Old Park Star, Talk The Talk and Mighty Park, with Mark Walsh booked to ride Mighty Park; Willie Mullins has declared Leader d’Allier for Paul Townend and Too Bossy For Us for that contest. The Singer Arkle Challenge Trophy Novices’ Chase offers a clash between Kopek Des Bordes and Lulamba among its seven entries, while Iroko tops the weights under 12st in the Trustmarque Ultima Handicap Chase.
Gordon Elliott’s Brighterdaysahead will be based at Olly Murphy’s ahead of Cheltenham, with connections aiming to change her Festival fortunes after previous attempts. Joe Tizzard’s Alexei and Henry de Bromhead’s Workahead complete the list of potential Champion Hurdle runners named for the opening-day feature.
If any declared runner is withdrawn before the race, betting markets are expected to adjust and reprice positions ahead of the Unibet Champion Hurdle on March 10.
