Cheltenham Festival 2026: Can Anyone Beat The Bankers?
The Cheltenham Festival is built on championship horses and standout favourites, but history shows the meeting has a habit of exposing even the most convincing “bankers”.
The unique demands of the track - relentless pace, unforgiving fences and that famous climb to the line - regularly turn seemingly straightforward races into tactical battles.
In recent years, several short-priced favourites on betting sites have arrived looking bombproof only to find themselves in a bruising battle.
That’s because the Cheltenham Festival rarely goes to script, and the horses that can dictate the tempo, jump aggressively, and force rivals into mistakes often upset the odds.
Here, instead of simply identifying the favourites most likely to win, we’re asking: how can they be beaten?
We look at several of the Festival’s headline races and the bankers that could go bust.
The New Lion - Champion Hurdle
The New Lion arrives at Cheltenham as one of the most exciting hurdlers in training, and his rapid rise has pushed him right to the head of the Champion Hurdle market with most betting apps.
His form this season has shown both elite speed and the ability to settle in strongly-run races, two qualities that are essential in this championship test.
The Champion Hurdle rarely goes as planned, and favourites often find themselves under pressure far earlier than expected.
This race is packed with hardened Grade 1 performers who are comfortable attacking from the front and forcing the pace from a long way out.
There are still some unknowns about this year's Champion Hurdle, with Lossiemouth and Brighterdaysahead yet to be confirmed runners.
Either of those star mares could give the Dan Skelton-trained The New Lion plenty to think about, but the biggest danger could lie with last year's winner Golden Ace, who has never been given the credit she deserves.
Majborough - Champion Chase
With Marine Nationale ruled out of the Cheltenham Festival, the Champion Chase has changed from a clash between the top two into a puzzle of who can actually put it up to Majborough.
The favourite’s latest form has been impressive, with his Leopardstown win being a demolition, and it’s why the market has snapped him into a clear standout.
Still, Cheltenham has already shown it can bite him: the 2025 Arkle defeat proved that when he’s dragged into a relentless end-to-end test, the final climb can turn the race into survival rather than speed.
Jonbon and L’Eau du Sud both have the class to hit the frame, but beating Majborough will require more than a neat round - his rivals will need to force him to jump fast, on the stretch, for a long way.
That’s why Il Etait Temps stands out as the most credible “anti-banker” angle: his best form comes when he can travel like the winner early, apply pressure through his jumping, and turn a two-mile Grade 1 into a sustained battle rather than a sit-and-sprint.
If he commits from the top of the hill, he’s the one horse that could turn Majborough’s task from straightforward to tricky.
Bambino Fever – Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle
Bambino Fever is a short-priced favourite with a profile that screams "Festival banker".
She’s already a Cheltenham Festival winner after last year's Champion Bumper rout and arrives off a commanding Fairyhouse win in January.
The obvious route to beating her is not just talent, but forcing the race to become awkward - a properly-run contest where rhythm, position and pressure matter late on.
Oldschool Outlaw is the clearest danger to the banker as she’s in winning form after landing a Grade 3 at Fairyhouse in February, and she also finished a close second to Bambino Fever at Naas in December.
If she commits to making it a relentless gallop and turns the last half-mile into a stamina-and-tempo test, she’s the one most likely to drag the favourite out of her comfort zone.
There are also credible British challengers who can get involved, including La Conquiere, who brings proven high-level form into the race.
If the Willie Mullins-trained banker is beaten, it’s most likely because Oldschool Outlaw makes it a truly run test throughout.
Teahupoo - Stayers’ Hurdle
Teahupoo heads the market after back-to-back top-level staying wins this season, including Leopardstown in December, where he beat Bob Olinger and Ballyburn.
That form explains why he’s treated as the one they all have to beat, but the Stayers’ is a race with the potential to turn into a war.
The danger for a banker here isn’t class - it’s where the race becomes a sustained pressure test from the home turn rather than a controlled set-up for the best finisher.
Last year's winner Bob Olinger is the standout danger to the favourite and arrives here after a close second to Teahupoo at Leopardstown.
Ballyburn has also repeatedly run right up to Teahupoo in the same staying Grade 1 sphere, so the favourite won’t be allowed an easy rhythm if they choose to force it.
If Teahupoo is beaten, it’s most likely because Bob Olinger makes it a grinding three-mile battle and refuses to let him dictate the finish.
Cheltenham rarely follows the script, and even the strongest favourites must survive the pace, pressure and unpredictability that define the Festival.
Majborough, Bambino Fever, Teahupoo and The New Lion may arrive as the headline acts, but none will have things entirely their own way.
Each race contains rivals capable of forcing a tougher scenario than the betting suggests.
At Cheltenham, it only takes one moment of madness for the story to change completely.
Can these favourites come out on top, or will the bankers go bust? Let us know in the comments below!
