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March is the month that the Cheltenham Festival dominates the back pages for four days of horseracing action which can send winning jockeys into the mainstream.
One such champion is Ireland’s Rachael Blackmore. A favourite with the general public following her triumph in the 2021 Grand National which made her the first female jockey to win the famous race.
At Cheltenham, Blackmore has cemented her place as one of the best jockeys around riding 16 winners at the festival including A Plus Tard in the 2022 Gold Cup where she repeated her previous feat and became the first female jockey the prestigious trophy.
Last year she opened the four-day meeting with a win in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle atop Slade Steel before taking victory in the Queen Mother Champion Chase with Captain Guinness. Those were her only two winners in 2024 but she’s back to challenge for the greatest honours and titles this time around.
Below, we’ll list all the horses Blackmore is riding on each day of the festival 2025 and rank their chances of winning:
Which horses is Rachael Blackmore riding?
Tuesday 11 March
1.20pm: Michael O’Sullivan Supreme Novices’ Chase
Workahead – Age: 7, Weight: 11-7, Trainer: Henry de Bromhead
With form of 131 over his last three races Workahead is developing into a horse to watch and will no doubt benefit from running at the Cheltenham Festival where the crowds and atmosphere is ramped up to maximum. He won his sole outing in points and confirmed his hurdles debut promise at Leopardstown in a 17-runner field on Boxing Day in what was an impressive display.
2.40pm: Ultima Handicap Chase
The Short Go – Age: 8, Weight: 10-8, Trainer Henry de Bromhead
A horse with really indifferent form having gone six races without a win. In his last outing in the Troytown at Navan he began the race as the second favourite but unseated his rider over the 12th jump. No races since to keep him fresh for the festival and in a stacked field of 24 runners he might go under the radar.
3.20pm: Close Brothers Mares’ Hurdle
July Flower – Age: 6, Weight: 11-5, Trainer: Henry de Bromhead
A young mare at only six-years-old, this horse has performed strongly in Grade 1 races in France before switching to the yard of Henry de Bromhead. A break of eight months was followed by victory in Leopardstown in a Grade 3 back in December where July Flower impressed with her stamina in a tightly contested race.
The step back up in class is a big doubt over this one though.
4.40pm: Boodles Fred Winter Handicap Hurdle
Murcia – Age: 4, Weight, 11-2, Trainer: Willie Mullins
The most recent success came in a listed event in France before an eighth place finish in the first outing after moving to Willie Mullins’ stable. An outing at Naas in February was an improvement and Murcia impressed with the effort towards the end of the race.
Which horses have the best chance of winning?
Tuesday at the Cheltenham Festival looks set to be a difficult day for Blackmore as she doesn’t have a stand out ride you can point to and say ‘they will definitely compete’. That said, of the four horses she’ll race there is potential that one or two may challenge the more favoured competitiors.
Below we’ve ranked which of Blackmore’s rides have the best chance of winning a race on the opening day of the festival:
4. July Flower – A similar situation to Workahead where the field has an outstanding candidate in Lossiemouth who won this race easily last year. The Willie Mullins-trained horse is the 2/3 favourite but July Flower is tracking well at 15/2 meaning there may be a chance if something unexpected happens during the race.
3. Workahead – Probably the horse you’ll get the best odds for with bookmakers currently at 13/2 for the opening race of the festival. The major issue is that Willie Mullins has fielded Kopek Des Bordes in the same race who is the overwhelming favourite at 10/11 thanks to three successive wins in a row. Workahead has a chance and the odds of a victory have lowered already having been backed from 12/1 but a place might be the safer pick here.
2. Short Go – A 24-runner field means any of the riders can steer their way to victory and odds of 14/1 place Short Go firmly in the middle of the pack meaning a win wouldn’t be too surprising. Katate Dori is the 6/1 favourite at present showing that this race is open and Blackmore’s pedigree may hold her in good stead. Probably back each way but a win isn’t out of the question.
1. Murcia – Beyond Your Dreams, Puturhandstogether and Total Look are all being favoured over Murcia but with these runners being younger and less experienced the race is pretty open. There is no clear standout and with pre-race odds of 9/1, the bookmakers expect Murcia to be up near the front by the time the finish line is approaching.