Four novices to follow at the 2025 Cheltenham Festival

With the 2025 Cheltenham Festival fast approaching, racing fans are already speculating which rising stars could make their mark at Prestbury Park in March. 

The iconic Festival has long been a proving ground for future champions, and this year’s crop of novices looks particularly exciting. 

So, as you start to place your Cheltenham bets ahead of this year’s meeting, here’s a list of four novices to follow this spring. 

Salvator Mundi – Supreme Novices’ Hurdle

It’s been three years since Willie Mullins won his record-seventh Sky Bet Supreme Novices’ Hurdle with Appreciate It in 2021, but the Irish handler appears to have a fantastic chance of extending his tally in the opening race to eight with Salvator Mundi in March. 

The five-year-old was second to the highly-rated Sir Gino on his French debut at Auteuil in April 2023, with both horses later being picked up by the Donnellys and joining Mullins and veteran handler Nicky Henderson, respectively. 

Salvator Mundi was thrown straight into the Triumph Hurdle at last year’s Festival but could fare no better than sixth. He has since put that form behind him with a commanding 62-length win at Tipperary in May before following up on his reappearance in a Grade 2 at Punchestown this year.

He’ll have to jump better in the Supreme than he did on that recent outing in Ireland. However, he should come on from that run, given that he was off the track for 242 days, and is a worthy favourite for this contest based on the form. 

Sir Gino – Arkle Challenge Trophy

That leads us nicely to Sir Gino, who remains unbeaten in his five outings over both hurdles and fences since joining Henderson in October 2023. 

The five-year-old was set to go off as the favourite in last year’s Triumph Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival but fell foul to the Seven Barrows illness, which almost ended the career of the indomitable Constitution Hill. 

Nevertheless, he returned to win the 4-Y-O Juvenile Hurdle at Aintree in April and filled in for his stablemate Constitution Hill in the Grade 1 Fighting Fifth Hurdle at Newcastle in November before making the switch to fences when comfortably holding off Ballyburn in the Wayward Lad. 

Sir Gino is odds-on for the Arkle as a result of that victory at Kempton Park’s Christmas Festival and should take all the beating in the two-mile chase. 

Ballyburn – Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase

One of the most exciting performers at last year’s Cheltenham Festival, Ballyburn hosed home in the Baring Bingham Novices’ Hurdle, leaving racing fans and pundits alike in awe as he streaked 13 lengths clear of stablemate Jimmy Du Seuil. 

After winning a third Grade 1 to end the season, the Mullins-trained horse made the much-anticipated switch to fences and won easily on his first start over the larger obstacles in a Beginners Chase at Punchestown in November. 

While he lost to Sir Gino in the aforementioned Wayward Lad over Christmas, it’s hard to take too much away from him in that defeat as it wasn’t over his optimum trip. Stepped back up in distance, and he has every chance of getting back to winning ways in the Brown Advisory. 

The New Lion – Turners Novices’ Hurdle

The New Lion hasn’t been far from the headlines this season, with his win over the festive period, particularly noteworthy—catching the attention of esteemed owner JP McManus, who snapped him up for an undisclosed fee after extending his record to 3-3 over hurdles. 

The Dan Skelton-trained horse, who won a bumper at Market Rasen on his sole start last season, made the switch to the smaller obstacles look seamless when winning a maiden at Chepstow on his reappearance in October. 

The six-year-old has since followed that up twice at Newbury. First winning a novice by three lengths, The New Lion produced a career-best in the Grade 1 Challow Hurdle when hardly needing to go through the gears under Harry Skelton. The Turners Novices’ Hurdle awaits.