Former Irish jockey Ruby Walsh believes the six changes to the Cheltenham Festival schedule will make races more competitive and increase field sizes.
Previous festival attendees have complained about the price range of tickets. To address this, Cheltenham will offer discounts on some tickets, increase food and drink options, and introduce new accommodation deals following criticism from punters and falling attendance. However, the price of a pint of Guinness will rise by 30p to £7.80.
There has also been criticism about the lack of access to the famous event in the Cotswolds, with many racegoers forced to travel miles on foot to the venue. In response, organisers have introduced a new park-and-ride system, additional coaches, and new hardstanding areas at the course for car parking.
To further increase interest and field sizes at the event, five races will be changed, and the National Hunt Chase, traditionally contested by amateur jockeys, will now be open to professional riders. It will become a novice handicap chase for horses rated 0-145 at the 2025 event.
The key race changes are as follows:
- The Turners Novices’ Chase will be replaced by a Grade Two limited novice handicap chase over the same 2.5-mile distance.
- The National Hunt Chase is now open to professional riders and will be transformed into a novice handicap chase for horses rated 0-145.
- The Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase has changed from a conditions race to a limited handicap.
- The Ryanair Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle penalty structure has been removed, making it a level-weight contest.
- In the Pertemps Final, winners of series qualifiers are guaranteed a run if they are within the weights at the declaration stage.
- Non-novice Festival handicap entrants must now run four times over fences and five times over hurdles to qualify.
The six key changes set to be made to the #CheltenhamFestival https://t.co/oSnr5MM5pM pic.twitter.com/wCxVIUnccn
— Sporting Life Racing (@SportingLife) September 26, 2024
Walsh, the most successful rider at the festival, believes the changes will have a profound effect on next year's event.
"All the changes are geared towards making the races more competitive. The aim is to attract as many of the best horses as possible to run at the Cheltenham Festival and for them to run in the right races," Walsh said to the Press Association.
“Cheltenham is the pinnacle of jump racing, and these changes help to maintain that. Of course, there will be some people who think these changes go too far, and others who think they don’t go far enough. The important thing to remember is that those making these changes have done so in the best interests of jump racing and the festival.”
Walsh also believes that the changes to the Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle will have a similarly positive effect on racing in the winter.
He added: “The idea of a handicap is to give everybody a level chance, but unfortunately, when you have limited information, it is very hard to put the correct mark on some horses. By increasing the number of runs required, hopefully, you will have more of the right horses in the right races.
“It should also increase competition and field sizes throughout the winter, which can’t be a bad thing.”
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