Coral Cup Tips 2022
Part of the Cheltenham Festival Day 2 action, Ladies’ Day, brings the Coral Cup tips into the spotlight. This is the third race of the day and the final action before the big feature race that is the Champion Chase. The Coral Cup is a Grade 3 contest at the Festival, and it’s one of those fascinating races from the Festival where long-priced gambles come into focus a little bit.
Coral Cup Potential Runners & Favourites
The Coral Cup is a handicap hurdle contest that, more often than not, is just stacked with unpredictable excitement. It’s generally a wide-open contest with a big field, and it is an absolute treat to look forward to. Our betting experts look through the Coral Cup runners for 2022.
THE SHUNTER was an impressive winner at the Festival last year and this appears to have been the target for him this year. He has won both his races at the course so clearly loves it here and will no doubt be in the mix here.
UNEXPECTED PARTY was a game winner at Ascot in Janaury so comes here in good form. He will be Dan Skelton’s best chance of gaining a first win in this race.
The claims may very well run deep in this fixture when it comes to putting together Coral Cup betting tips at this year’s Festival.
Other interesting names among the early entries on the ante-post board include GOWEL ROAD and MCFABULOUS. The latter has put together two credible Grade 2 runs in defeat at Cheltenham this year. So once again, the Coral Cup is looking like a wide-open affair.
Coral Cup Noticeable Confirmed Runners
| Horse | Silks | Trainer/Jockey | Odds |
| Good Risk At All (RESERVE) |  | J: RESERVE T: Sam Thomas | 7/1 |
| The Shunter |  | J: Mark Walsh T: Emmet Mullins | 15/2 |
| Saint Felicien |  | J: Robbie Power T: Gordon Elliott | 8/1 |
| Unexpected Party |  | J: Harry Skelton T: Dan Skelton | 17/2 |
| Drop The Anchor | | J: Simon Torrens T: Pat Fahy | 17/2 |
| Camprond | | J: Aidan Coleman T: Philip Hobbs | 9/1 |
| Indigo Breeze |  | J: Jack Kennedy T: Gordon Elliott | 11/1 |
| Gowel Road |  | J: Sam Twiston-Davies T: Nigel Twiston-Davies | 12/1 |
| Grand Roi |  | J: Davy Russell T: Gordon Elliott | 14/1 |
| Fastorslow |  | J: Darragh O’Keeffe T: Martin Brassil | 14/1 |
| McFabulous |  | J: Harry Cobden T: Paul Nicholls | 16/1 |
| Ashdale Bob |  | J: J Foley T: John Harrington | 16/1 |
| Ganapathi |  | J: Bryan Cooper T: Willie Mullins | 20/1 |
| Mars Harper |  | J: Jack Kennedy T: Gordon Elliott | 25/1 |
| Garry Clermont |  | J: Jonjo O’Neill Jr T: Jonjo O’Neill | 25/1 |
| The Bosses Oscar | | J: R James T: Gordon Elliott | 25/1 |
| Commander Of Fleet |  | J: Sahne Fitzgerald T: Gordon Elliott | 28/1 |
| Tronador |  | J: Sam Ewing T: Gordon Elliott | 28/1 |
| Maze Runner |  | J: Sean O’Keeffe T: Willie Mullins | 28/1 |
| Call Me Lord |  | J: Daryl Jacob T: Nicky Henderson | 33/1 |
| Dans Le Vent |  | J: Isabel Williams T: Evan Williams | 33/1 |
| Christopher Wood |  | J: Harry Bannister T: Venetia Williams | 33/1 |
| Fair Frontieres |  | J: David Bass T: Kim Bailey | 40/1 |
| Champagne Gold |  | J: Rachael Blackmore T: Henry De Bromhead | 40/1 |
| Hang In There |  | J: J A Anderson T: Emma Lavelle | 50/1 |
| Daly Tiger | | J: E Walsh T: Noel Meade | 50/1 |
| Ask Dillon (RESERVE) |  | J: RESERVE T: Fergal O’Brien | 66/1 |
| Top Moon | | J: Richie Mclernon T: Ben Haslam | 80/1 |
*Odds Correct as of 12pm 14/03/22*
How Often Does a Favourite Horse Win The Coral Cup Race
Of the last ten Coral Cup winners, just one has been the favourite, which was Dame De Compagnie in 2020. So instead, the thing that jumps off the page when looking back through the recent history of the Coral Cup renewals is that longer-priced options have been showing.
In last year’s renewal, Heaven Help Us landed the win from a big 33/1 gamble out of the blue. Three of the previous nine winners of the Coral Cup have got their score from at least 28/1. But none of the last 20 winners has been bigger than 33/1, so that’s the cut-off point, really, when piecing together Coral Cup betting tips.
Coral Favourites vs Winners in The Past 10 Years
| Year | Favourite Horse* | Winning Horse |
| 2021 | Grand Roi (12th) | Heaven Help Us (33/1) |
| 2020 | Dame De Compagnie | Dame De Compagnie (5/1) |
| 2019 | Uradel (7th) | Willian Henry (28/1) |
| 2018 | Tombstone (22nd) | Bleu Berry (20/1) |
| 2017 | William Henry (4th) / Max Dynamite (22nd) | Supasundae (16/1) |
| 2016 | Rock The Kasbah (22nd) | Diamond King (12/1) |
| 2015 | Actival (3rd) | Au Ptits Soins (9/1) |
| 2014 | Dell’ Arca (5th) | Whisper (14/1) |
| 2013 | Pendraw (17th) | Medinas (33/1) |
| 2012 | Get Me Out Of Here (2nd) / Balgarry (7th) | Son Of A Flicka (16/1) |
*(-) = Finishing Position, UR = Unseated Rider, F = Faller, RO = Ran Out, PU = Pulled Up
Coral Cup History & Present Time
The Coral Cup is a Grade 3 handicap hurdle race over a 2m 5f around Cheltenham’s Old Course. 2008 was the one exception when it was moved to the New Course because of weather, and it was half a furlong shorter that year than its current distance.
There are ten hurdles in the Coral Cup, and right from the start, the fixture has had the backing of sponsors Coral. The race was handed its current status of Grade in 1999. The prize purse for the 2022 Coral Cup is £100,000.
Coral Cup Jockey & Trainer Records
Nicky Henderson is the leading trainer to have seen home the most Coral Cup winners with a tally of four. All of his wins have been since 2010, when he opened his account with Spirit River.
Gordon Elliott is the only other trainer in the last twenty renewals of the Coral Cup besides Henderson to have more than one winner in the race (2).
Davy Russel leads the way for jockey successes in the handicap hurdle feature, with three wins in the last 20 renewals. The most recent of those was on Diamond King in 2016.
Russell is currently the joint-most successful jockey in the race with three wins alongside Barry Geraghty, who rode Dame De Compagnie home in 2020 before retiring.