Festival Plate Handicap Chase Odds

The Cheltenham Festival is full of handicap races which take place across the week, and one of the premier handicap steeplechase races to take place on the penultimate day of racing is the Festival Plate Handicap Chase. Contested after the feature race on day three of the festival, this race is a stepping stone race for handicappers looking to add a key win to their stats. Here at BetUK, you can find all the latest odds for Cheltenham betting, including this Festival Plate and the Stayer Hurdle, which is also run earlier in the day.

About the Festival Plate Handicap

The Festival Plate Handicap Chase, or the Magners Handicap Chase as it's now known due to sponsorship, is a premier national hunt steeplechase which takes place on day three of the Cheltenham Festival. Formerly classed a Grade 3 race, it was awarded Premier Handicap status in 2022 by the British Horse Racing Authority and is now a valuable handicap chase for trainers to win.

First contested in 1951, although a month late due to a waterlogged track, it was originally called the Flete Challenge Cup. However, the race is now a key fixture within the Cheltenham calendar and is run on the new course over the larger fence obstacles. Raced over a distance of two miles and four furlongs, horses will jump 17 fences as they take in almost two laps of the course.

Open to horses aged five and over, the race is a handicap chase which means horses will compete at various weights which are determined by the handicapper. These weights can vary between 10st 2lb and up to 12st, which can make the race difficult depending on the weather conditions, which can often make the ground heavier and trickier for higher-weight horses.

Within this race, while there are no allowances given to mares who participate, only one won the race from a total of 13 runners, which shows that male horses tend to do better in this race.

Festival Plate Betting Tips

As part of our complete range of BetUK Cheltenham Festival Tips, we offer Festival Plate Handicap betting tips ahead of the race. We also offer tips for all of the races on day three of the Cheltenham Festival and beyond. These tips include stats and insight on who could win the race and which horse could finish in the runner-up positions, so we’ll have all punters covered in all of the betting markets.

Festival Plate Handicap Chase Betting Odds Cheltenham 2024

Here at BetUK, we offer some of the latest Festival Plate Handicap Chase odds, which means we’ll have all of the ante-post odds and the newest options in the build-up to the race itself. Whether you’re waiting until just before the off or you’d like to place your bets nice, and early, we have outright winner markets each-way and forecast bets on this main event at the Cheltenham Festival.

Festival Plate Winners

The Festival Plate trends show this is a strong race for punters who like to follow the favourites in a race. During the last five runnings of the Festival Plate Handicap, the favourite has either won the race or finished second, which means it could happen again here. Generally, they’ve still offered relatively good betting odds at 100/30 or 9/4, but there have been some previous winners with large prices, such as 33/1 and 20/1 last year, so we don't rule those horses out either.

Festival Plate Handicap Most Recent Winner

2023 - Seddon
2022 - Coole Cody
2021 - The Shunter
2020 - Simpy The Betts
2019 - Siruh Du Lace
2018 - The Storyteller
2017 - Road To Respect
2016 - Empire Of Dirt
2015 - Darna
2014 - Ballyganour
2013 - Carrickboy

Festival Plate Handicap Leading Jockeys

When it comes to the leading jockeys in the Festival Plate Handicap Chase, only one has managed to land two wins, and that is Bryan Cooper, who won the race on consecutive years. If you’re using jockey weight as determining factor for your bet selection, then none of the last ten horses has carried more than 11st 4lb, so this is something to look out for during your selections.

Festival Plate Handicap Winning Jockeys

2023 - Ben Harvey
2022 - Adam Wedge
2021 - The Shunter
2020 - Gavin Sheehan
2019 - Lizzie Kelly
2018 - Davy Russell
2017 - Bryan Cooper
2016 - Bryan Cooper
2015 - David Bass
2014 - Tom Scudamore
2013 - Liam Tredwell

Top Festival Plate Handicap Trainers

The British trainers lead the charge when it comes to the most success in this race, and that comes from Nicky Henderson and Martin Pipe, who have four wins to their name. David Pipe and Venetia Williams have also won this race three times in their career, so there is plenty of talent to choose from following the final declarations. If you’re unsure of which trainer to avoid, those who’ve yet to have success in this race include Paul Nicholls and Alan King, even after a number of horses.

Festival Plate Handicap Trainer Wins

2023 - John McConnell
2022 - Evan Williams
2021 - Emmet Mullins
2020 - Harry Whittington
2019 - Nick Williams
2018 - Gordon Elliott
2017 - Noel Meade
2016 - Colm Murphy
2015 - Kim Bailey
2014 - David Pipe
2013 - Venetia Williams.

Festival Handicap Plate FAQS

What time is the Festival Plate Handicap Chase?

The race is run at 4:10 pm on day three of the Cheltenham Festival.

What is the Plate Handicap Chase?

A premier handicap race which is open to chase horses aged five and over at the Cheltenham Festival.

Are there any trials for the Festival Plate Handicap Chase?

Yes, there are many routes which horses can take to get to this race and including the Gold Cup race earlier in the season.