



Day 3 of the Cheltenham Festival is traditionally known as Stayers’ Hurdle Day, featuring the championship race for long-distance hurdlers. Thursday’s card brings together elite stamina performers alongside several highly competitive handicaps, creating excellent betting opportunities across the afternoon.
By the third day of the Festival, patterns often begin to emerge in terms of ground conditions, trainer form and market confidence. Horses with proven stamina and previous Festival experience tend to perform particularly well once the attritional nature of Cheltenham begins to take its toll on the field.
Alongside the Stayers’ Hurdle, Thursday’s card includes the Ryanair Chase and the historic Pertemps Final, both of which regularly attract huge betting interest and large competitive fields.
Below you’ll find our full race-by-race Cheltenham Festival Day 3 tips, including best bets, value selections and outsider angles for every race.
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Best Bet: (To be updated race week)
A runner expected to thrive over a stamina test at Cheltenham and ideally suited by Thursday’s race conditions.
Value Bet:
Well-treated contender with strong handicap form and the potential to outperform market expectations.
Each-Way Angle:
Festival-profile stayer capable of finishing strongly up the famous Cheltenham hill.


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13:30 Turners Novices’ Chase Tips
The opening race on Day 3 is a high-quality novice chase over an intermediate distance and often features some of the most progressive young chasers of the season. Horses competing here typically possess strong novice hurdle form and have adapted well to fences during the campaign.
The race often rewards accurate jumpers who can travel comfortably at a strong pace before delivering a finishing effort on the uphill run to the line.
TipMan Selection:
Tip will be updated closer to the race once final declarations, ground conditions and pace angles are confirmed.
Danger:
To be updated race week.
Value Angle:
To be updated race week.
14:10 Pertemps Network Final Handicap Hurdle Tips
The Pertemps Final is a fiercely competitive staying handicap hurdle which requires horses to qualify through a series of races earlier in the season. As a result, many runners arrive carefully targeted for this contest with handicap marks that connections believe can be exploited.
Strong stayers with proven ability in large-field handicaps tend to perform best, particularly those who travel smoothly before producing a late run up the Cheltenham hill.
TipMan Selection:
Tip will be updated closer to the race once handicap marks and declarations are confirmed.
Each-Way Play:
To be updated race week.
14:50 Ryanair Chase Tips
The Ryanair Chase has established itself as one of the premier middle-distance contests of the Cheltenham Festival. Run over two and a half miles, the race often attracts elite chasers who possess both speed and stamina.
Many winners arrive with strong Grade 1 chase form and the ability to travel strongly throughout the race before quickening between the final two fences.
TipMan Selection:
Tip will be updated closer to the race once final runners and tactical pace projections are confirmed.
Main Rival:
To be updated race week.
15:30 Stayers’ Hurdle Tips
The Stayers’ Hurdle is the championship race for long-distance hurdlers and provides a true test of stamina and determination. The relentless pace combined with the famous Cheltenham hill ensures that only the strongest stayers are able to prevail.
Recent winners have typically possessed proven form over three miles and the ability to maintain a strong gallop throughout the race.
TipMan Selection:
Tip will be updated closer to the race once confirmed runners and pace maps are analysed.
Main Rival:
To be updated race week.
16:10 Festival Plate Handicap Chase Tips
The Plate Handicap Chase is one of the most competitive handicaps of the entire meeting and regularly produces dramatic finishes. With a large field and compressed handicap ratings, small margins can often separate winners from the rest of the field.
Horses with strong recent form and proven jumping ability tend to perform well, particularly those capable of maintaining position near the pace.
TipMan Selection:
Tip will be updated closer to the race once handicap marks and market movements are confirmed.
Each-Way Angle:
To be updated race week.
16:50 Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle Tips
This race has grown in prestige since its introduction and regularly attracts some of the best novice mares in training. Many runners arrive unbeaten or lightly raced, making form analysis particularly interesting.
Horses with strong novice hurdle form and proven stamina often perform best in the demanding conditions at Cheltenham.
TipMan Selection:
Tip will be updated closer to the race once final declarations are confirmed.
17:30 Kim Muir Challenge Cup Handicap Chase Tips
The Kim Muir closes Day 3 and is a demanding amateur riders’ handicap chase over an extended distance. Stamina, jumping consistency and strong race positioning are key factors in determining the outcome.
Horses with proven staying ability and experience in competitive handicap chases often perform best, particularly those capable of finishing strongly once the field begins to tire approaching the final fence.
TipMan Selection:
Tip will be updated closer to the race once final declarations and pace analysis are confirmed.
Cheltenham accumulators remain a popular betting approach across the Festival, and Day 3 provides an interesting mix of championship races and competitive handicaps for multiple-bet strategies.
Many bettors combine runners from the Ryanair Chase and Stayers’ Hurdle with value selections from the handicaps to build potentially lucrative accumulators.
As always, the competitive nature of Cheltenham means spreading risk across several smaller accumulators can often be a more effective strategy than relying on a single large multiple.
Our final Day 3 accumulator selections will be added closer to the Festival once declarations, ground conditions and pace maps are confirmed.
Safer Acca:
Shortlist of reliable contenders likely to run strong races.
(Updated race week)
Value Acca:
Blend of graded contenders and well-handicapped runners.
(Updated race week)
Big Odds Acca:
Festival outsiders suited by historical race patterns and pace scenarios.
(Updated race week)
Several consistent patterns have emerged on Day 3 of the Cheltenham Festival which can help highlight potential betting opportunities.
Stayers’ Hurdle winners usually have strong previous Cheltenham form
Horses proven on the track’s demanding undulations often outperform rivals lacking course experience.
Stamina is the key factor on Thursday’s card
Several races on Day 3 are run over extended distances, making endurance a decisive attribute.
Irish trainers maintain a strong Festival strike rate
Leading Irish yards regularly target the Ryanair Chase and novice hurdles with high-quality runners.
Handicap races regularly produce value winners
Large fields and competitive handicap marks create opportunities for overlooked runners.
Understanding these trends can help narrow down the strongest contenders before analysing the final declarations.
To maximise returns across the Festival, using bookmaker sign-up offers and extra place races can significantly improve betting value.
👉 See the best Cheltenham bookmaker offers here
When is Cheltenham Festival Day 3 2026?
Day 3 takes place on the Thursday of Cheltenham Festival week.
What is the biggest race on Day 3?
The Stayers’ Hurdle is the headline championship race for long-distance hurdlers.
Which race is hardest to predict on Thursday?
The Pertemps Final Handicap Hurdle often produces competitive betting markets and large fields.
Are stamina horses important on Day 3?
Yes. Several races on Thursday are run over extended distances, making stamina a key factor in performance.
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