• 14/03/2019
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Our tipsters are ready to dive through the field of the Kim Muir Challenge Cup from the Cheltenham Festival, which features amateur riders.

That adds an excellent unpredictability to proceedings, but our racing experts will be looking at the ante-post market and looking for trends that could help towards betting plans for the 2023 edition.

As the Festival gets closer to the big start, tips for the Kim Muir odds and all the other races at the event will be uploaded.

Last year’s Kim Muir Challenge Cup winner was Mount Ida, continuing a string of recent 7-year-old winners.

Tip – FRONTAL ASSAULT 

Gordon Elliot will have been happy to see the handicapper allocate a mark of 145 for Frontal Assault and after being exclusively campaigned over shorter trips this season over fences, the seven-year-old should relish a proper test of stamina and appears to have been laid out to contest this very race for quite some time.

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Kim Muir Challenge Cup – Overlooked Outsiders

Kim Muir Challenge Cup betting odds can be some of the most difficult ones to sift through at the Cheltenham Festival.

That’s because of the element of amateur riders in the contest. As a nod towards that, there have only been two favourites to have won this ungraded race in the last decade.

While there has been a more recent trend in Kim Muir Challenge Cup odds of shorter-priced winners, Domesday Book bucked the trend in 2017.

As a 7-year-old, Domesday Book won from a 40/1 SP. That highlights that sometimes the overlooked outsiders are no forlorn hope.

Our betting experts will be uploading some of those bigger each-way players in the Kim Muir Challenge Cup odds a little closer to the Festival.

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Kim Muir Challenge Cup Runners – Thursday, 17th March 5.30

NUMBER	SILKS	HORSE	TRAINER/JOCKEY
1		Frontal Assualt	T: Gordon Elliott J: Rob James (3)
2		Fakir D’alene	T: Gordon Elliott J: H C Swan (3)
3		Ain’t That A Shame	T: Henry De Bromhead J: Ben Harvey (3)
4		Janika	T: Nicky Henderson J: Ben Bromley (3)
5		Cat Tiger	T: Paul Nicholls J: David Maxwell
6		School Boy Hours	T: Noel Meade J: Derek O’Connor
7		Elegant Esacpe	T: Colin Tizzard J: Thomasina Eyston (7)
8		Smoking Gun	T: Gordon Elliott J: Jamie Codd
9		Mister Fogpatches	T: Pat Fahy J: Patrick Mullins
10		Almazhar Garde	T: Charlie Longsdon J: M J M O’Sullivan (3)
11		Mister Coffey	T: Nicky Henderson J: Sam Waley-Cohen
12		Lord Accord	T: Neil Mulholland J: J W Hendrick (7)
13		Mindsmadeup	T: Matthew J Smith J: Finian Maguire
14		Come On Teddy	T: Tom George J: William Biddick
15		Omar Maretti	T: Alex Hales J: Dale Peters (3)
16		Mint Condition	T: Jennie Candlish J: Gina Andrews
17		The Mighty Don	T: Nick Gifford J: James King
18		Glenloe	T: Gordon Elliott J: Barry O’Neill
19		Rocco	T: Nigel Twiston-Davies J: Zac Baker
20		Chambard	T: Venetia Williams J: Lucy Turner (3)
21		Larry	T: Gary Moore J: Freddie Mitchell
22		Rightplacerightime	T: Emmet Mullins J: Maxine O’Sullivan
23		Powerstown Park	T: Sam Thomas J: Tommie O’Brien
24		Red Infantry	T: Ian Williams J: Tristan Durrell (5)

 

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Kim Muir Odds 2023

Horse/Form	Silks	Jockey/Trainer	Odds
Frontal Assault 18-342		J:Rob James (3) T:Gordon Elliott	9/2
Ain’t That A Shame 31-322		J:Ben Harvey (3) T:Henry De Bromhead	7/1
School Boy Hours 243-61		J:Derek O’Connor T:Noel Meade	7/1
Smoking Gun -6F1P3		J:Jamie Codd T:Gordon Elliott	8/1
Mister Fogpatches 43323		J:Pat Fahy T:Patrick Mullins	10/1
Come On Teddy 36-152		J:William Biddick T:Tom George	12/1
Mister Coffey 74-322		J:Sam Waley-Cohen T:Nicky Henderson	14/1
Omar Maretti 11-211		J:Dale Peters (3) T:Alex Hales	14/1
Cat Tiger 3-2521		J:David Maxwell T:Paul Nicholls	16/1
Fakir D’alene 32117		J:H C Swan (3) T:Gordon Elliott	16/1
Glenloe 34/743		J:Barry O’Neill T:Gordon Elliott	16/1

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How to pick a Kim Muir Challenge Cup Winner

Form and trends are the backbone of our betting experts’ recommendations for Kim Muir Challenge Cup betting.

We have already mentioned the lack of favourites winning the contest – just two in the last ten. There have been five in the previous twenty editions.

Undoubtedly, other races at the Cheltenham Festival have had a better strike rate by favourites.

Last 10 Kim Muir Challenge Cup Winners Odds

• 2021 Mount Ida 3/1F
• 2020 Milan Native 9/1
• 2019 Any Second Now 6/1
• 2018 Missed Approach 8/1
• 2017 Domesday Book 40/1
• 2016 Cause Of Causes 9/2
• 2015 The Package 9/1
• 2014 Spring Heeled 12/1
• 2013 Same Difference 16/1
• 2012 Sunnyhillboy 13/2F

Each of the last four winners of this fixture has been 7-year-olds, as has five of the last six, so that’s a trend to consider.

Also, there have been 14 GB winners in the last 20 editions, with five from Ireland and one from France during that span.

The fixture is open to both male and female runners, but there has been just one female winner from a total of 22 that have entered across the last 20 renewals.

Other vital trends that crop up when sizing up how to pick a Kim Muir Challenge Cup winner includes each of the last 20 winners having been no bigger than 9/1 in their previous victory.

There hasn’t been a winner at a price bigger than 40/1 across the last twenty renewals, and all but one had not had a fall during the current season before winning.

There’s a lot more to the Kim Muir racing trends than that, and our experts will be taking a full deep dive to deliver Kim Muir Challenge Cup tips.

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All About The Kim Muir Challenge Cup: Past and Present

There is plenty of great history behind the Kim Muir Challenge Cup, which was established in 1946. It has been one for amateur riders right from its concept.

It’s officially the Fulke Walwyn Kim Muir Challenge Cup, a chase at a distance of 3m 2f. The fixture is played out on the turf of Cheltenham’s New Course.

It’s open to five years old and up, and only amateur riders get to participate in the contest. However, 2021 was an exception, as the Festival was restricted only to professional jockeys.

The race is a handicap fixture, controlling the weights for the contest. Only two horses have won the fixture on more than one occasion – Chu-Teh (1967, 1968) and Glyde Court (1985, 1986).

The leading jockey in the contest is Jamie Codd, with four victories under his belt, the most recent happening in 2016.

Fred Rimell is the leading trainer in the Kim Muir, having taken four wins. The latest of those was in 1977.

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How Do Horses Qualify for the Kim Muir Challenge Cup Race?

Entrants of five years old and up can run in the Kim Muir, but the race condition is amateur riders only.

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What is the Kim Muir Challenge Cup Prize Money in 2023?

The 2021 winner Mount Ida, despite a reasonably bumpy run, took the top prize of £32,497.50. The rest of the Kim Muir payouts were 2nd £9,649.50, 3rd £4,824.75, 4th £2,404.50, 5th £1,207.50, 6th £609, 7th £304.50, 8th £147. We await details of the 2023 purse.

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Kim Muir Challenge Cup Past Winners

Notable former winners of the Kim Muir Challenge Cup include 1989 victor Cool Ground, who also landed the Cheltenham Gold Cup during his career. 

2010 winner Ballabriggs went on to win the Aintree Grand National the following year. Higher-profile modern-day winners include Spring Heeled, Cause of Causes and Domesday Book. 

Year	Horse	Odds	Jockey	Trainer
2021	Mount Ida	3/1F	Jack Kennedy	Denise Foster
2020	Milan Native	9/1	Rob James	Gordon Elliott
2019	Any Second Now	6/1	Derek O’Connor	Ted Walsh
2018	Missed Approach	8/1	Noel McParlan	Warren Greatrex
2017	Domesday Book	40/1	Gina Andrews	Stuart Edmunds
2016	Cause Of Causes	9/2	Jamie Codd	Gordon Elliott
2015	The Package	9/1	Jamie Codd	David Pipe
2014	Spring Heeled	12/1	Robbie McNamara	Jim Culloty
2013	Same Difference	16/1	Ryan Hatch	Nigel Twiston-Davies
2012	Sunnyhillboy	13/2F	Alan Berry	Jonjo O’Neill
2011	Junior	100/30F	Jamie Codd	David Pipe
2010	Ballabriggs	9/1	Richard Harding	Donald McCain, Jr

Other Races on Day 3 of the Cheltenham Festival

The Kim Muir Challenge Cup is the final race of St Patrick’s Day on Day 3 at Cheltenham. Here are all the races for Thursday at the Festival:

13:30 The Turners Novices’ Chase (Grade 1)

14:10 The Pertemps Network Final (A Handicap Hurdle Race) (Listed)

14:50 The Ryanair Steeplechase (Grade 1)

15:30 The Paddy Power Stayers’ Hurdle (Grade 1)

16:10 The Paddy Power Plate (A Handicap Steeple Chase) (Grade 3)

16:50 The Mares Novices’ Hurdle (Grade 2)

17:30 Fulke Walwyn Kim Muir Challenge Cup (sponsored by the JRL Group) (0-145)