Cheltenham Gold Cup Guide

With the Cheltenham Festival almost upon us, the hype for one of the biggest horse racing events of the year is building, with bettors and horse racing enthusiasts doing their research throughout the different days of the Cheltenham Festival. OddsMonkey has guides for specific days, such as our Cheltenham Festival Day 1 guide, yet we have also created this guide for the most prestigious race of the event, which is the Gold Cup! 

In typical OddsMonkey fashion, we will be looking at all the different aspects surrounding the Gold Cup, from the basics of what the race is to the favourites and selections throughout the 2026 Cheltenham Festival! 

What Is The Cheltenham Gold Cup?

For most horse racing fans, the Cheltenham Gold Cup is one of the most prestigious trophies throughout the entire horse racing calendar, with the Grand National being another illustrious competition. The Cheltenham Gold Cup is held annually in Gloucestershire, and it is a Grade 1 National Hunt race, which means it is a horse racing event that only allows the very best of the best! 

The Gold Cup takes place on Friday, which is the last day of the Cheltenham Festival each year, and this race is in such high regard that the entire day is named after it, as it is called Gold Cup Friday. Usually taking place around 16:00 (GMT), this event is the most notable race of the Cheltenham Festival. The Gold Cup attracts some of the top horses, jockeys, and trainers from around the world, and winning the race is known to be one of the biggest achievements in the world of jump racing! 

Cheltenham Gold Cup Race

The Cheltenham Gold Cup race takes place over a distance of 3 miles and 2 1⁄2 furlongs, which is about 5.2 kilometres, making it one of the longest races throughout the Cheltenham Festival. With 22 fences, this is a challenging race for both horses and jockeys, as it requires skill, determination, and stamina to perform well throughout the Gold Cup. If bettors are looking to learn more about horse racing, we offer a horse racing betting guide that is full of information relating to horse racing bets! 

The Cheltenham Gold Cup typically has a maximum field of 14 runners, though this number can vary depending on the year, as there might be some non-runners or withdrawals before the race. The horses that do take part in the Cheltenham Gold Cup are known to be some of the best horses in the United Kingdom and the world! There are some requirements that need to be met for a horse to qualify, as horses under the age of 5 cannot compete, and horses that have won or placed in Grade 1 races before are likely to be considered for the Gold Cup.

Finally, the Gold Cup race has one of the biggest prize pools in horse racing. The total prize pool tends to exceed £600,000, and the winner typically receives around £350,000. This number typically varies every year, depending on sponsorships and other factors.

The Cheltenham Gold Cup is run on the New Course at Cheltenham Racecourse. Whilst the Old Course is better suited to quicker horses who like to sit close to the pace, the New Course offers a much harder test of stamina! If you are new to horse race betting but want to join in with the hype of the Cheltenham Festival, make sure to check out our beginner tips for the Cheltenham Festival!

Gold Cup 2026 Preview

When looking forward to the Gold Cup coming up on Friday, the 13th of March, there are many interesting selections to pick out from the horses that are currently set to compete within the Gold Cup. Last year’s winner was Inothewayurthinkin, who beat the favourite Galopin Des Champs to deny him a historic third consecutive win.

With odds of 6/1 for Inothewayurthinkin this year, Galopin Des Champs looks to regain the cup with odds of 11/2, making this horse the favourite for this year’s event! Yet there are many other horses who could surprise the field, such as The Jukebox Man and Gaelic Warrior, which are placed at odds of 8/1 and 10/1, respectively. 

Throughout the field, we can see many other impressive horses, such as Grangeclare West. The Gold Cup 2026 is set up to be a thrilling contest, proving why it is one of the biggest horse races throughout the year. 

If you are looking for previews throughout the different days, check out our Cheltenham Festival Day 4 guide, which goes through the other races that take place across Gold Cup Friday.

Cheltenham Festival At OddsMonkey

The Cheltenham Festival is upon us, and there is no better place than OddsMonkey to find out all you need to know about horse racing, but more specifically, horse racing matched betting! With guides on how to get into matched betting and different techniques bettors can use, OddsMonkey has it all! 

We also like to ensure that bettors who use the OddsMonkey site make the most of the Cheltenham Festival, which is why we have included a Cheltenham Festival betting offers guide that can be used when placing bets throughout the Cheltenham Festival!