The 2026 Plate Handicap Chase, sponsored by Sun Racing, promises to be one of the most competitive contests on day one of the Cheltenham Festival, with 23 runners lining up over 2m4f on the New Course at 4:40pm.
It is a race that regularly throws up future graded performers, and this year’s renewal has a familiar mix of upwardly mobile handicappers, Festival specialists and seasoned campaigners dropping back into a big-field chase.
Run over about 2m4f on the New Course, the Plate demands a blend of stamina, jumping accuracy, and tactical speed, with the long run to the last and the climb to the line exposing any weakness.
Historically, Irish trainers have enjoyed a strong hand in this race, winning five of the last ten runnings, and they again send a powerful team headed by McLaurey, Down Memory Lane, Downmexicoway, and Will The Wise.
Handicapping is usually tight, but recent trends suggest the sweet spot for winners has been official ratings in the low-to-mid 140s, carrying no more than 10st 13lb.
That puts a fair few of this year’s field in the right bracket on weight and mark, especially the second tier of the market behind the clear principals.
2026 Plate Handicap Chase Runners & Odds
*Odds from betfred correct at time of publishing
| Horse | Jockey | Trainer | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Madara | Harry Skelton | D Skelton | 7/2 |
| McLaurey | Mark Walsh | E Mullins | 9/2 |
| Down Memory Lane | Jack Kennedy | G Elliott | 7/1 |
| Downmexicoway | Darragh O’Keeffe | H De Bromhead | 15/2 |
| Zurich | Brian Hayes | H De Bromhead | 17/2 |
| Will The Wise | Keith Donoghue | G P Cromwell | 9/1 |
| Booster Bob | S Bowen | O Murphy | 11/1 |
| No Questions Asked | Ben Jones | B Pauling | 14/1 |
| Jipcot | Kielan Woods | J & A O’Neill | 14/1 |
| O’Moore Park | Sean O’Keeffe | W P Mullins | 18/1 |
| Peaky Boy | Jonjo O’Neill Jr. | J & A O’Neill | 25/1 |
| Dee Capo | Danny Gilligan | G Elliott | 28/1 |
| Midnight It Is | Sean Flanagan | G P Cromwell | 28/1 |
| Guard Your Dreams | Sam Twiston-Davies | N & W Twiston-Davies | 33/1 |
| Riskintheground | C J Todd | D Skelton | 40/1 |
| Theatre Native | Mike O’Connor | H De Bromhead | 40/1 |
| Western Zephyr | Shane Fenelon | M Bowen | 40/1 |
| Grandeur D’ame | Thomas Bellamy | A King | 40/1 |
| Jungle Boogie | Charlie Deutsch | Miss V Williams | 50/1 |
| Moon D’orange | Callum Pritchard | J C McConnell | 50/1 |
| Boombawn | Tristan Durrell | D Skelton | 66/1 |
| Yes Indeed | Freddie Keighley | M Keighley | 100/1 |
| Embittered | Paddy Hanlon | S Hosie | 150/1 |
Leading Fancies and Key Contenders
Madara, from Dan Skelton, has been flagged as one of the best-handicapped horses heading to the Festival, rating him around 6lb ahead of his BHA mark of 140.
A strong course record, including a big run in the December Gold Cup over a similar trip, underlines his suitability for this test, and he returns to the New Course with cheekpieces back on after another solid effort earlier in the season.
Irish raider McLaurey has been prominent in the betting for some time and brings a solid profile from handicaps, albeit with his jumping set for a stern examination in this large field.
Yet to win a chase, connections have clearly had this race in mind, and his mark of 133 leaves him with a nice racing weight if he can hold a position and find rhythm early.
Owner J P McManus is double-handed with Down Memory Lane and McLaurey, and Down Memory Lane in particular arrives off the back of a confident ride and decisive win at Navan that suggested he is ready for a better race.
Will The Wise, Booster Bob, Zurich, Downmexicoway, and Riskintheground are all flagged by trend and form-based previews as horses to note, each ticking at least one important box in terms of recent form, trip suitability, or course experience.
Zurich, in particular, is a course-and-distance winner who has been running well in competitive handicaps and looks fairly treated off 134, while Booster Bob has done little wrong in his chasing career and still has potential to improve over this trip.
Trends That Matter
A quick look at the recent Plate winners offers a useful profile filter for this year’s field:
- Distance: All of the last ten winners had already scored between 2m3f and 2m5f, underlining the importance of proven form at, or very close to, this trip.
- Class: The vast majority had won in Class 3 company or higher, so this is rarely a race for a horse stepping straight out of lower-grade success.
- Ratings and weight: Seven of the last ten winners were rated between 140 and 145, and no horse has carried more than 11st 4lb to victory in the past decade.
- Experience: Winners typically arrive with no more than 11 chase starts, leaving room for improvement while still having enough experience to cope with the Festival pressure.
- Price and age: Four of the last ten winners were sent off favourite, but four were priced at 12/1 or bigger; nine of the last ten have been aged between six and nine.
Those trends naturally drag market leaders towards the top of any shortlist, but they also suggest scope for a mid-priced runner with the right profile to land the prize.
Applying The Trends: Who Fits Best?
When those trends are applied, several of Tuesday’s field stand out as ticking multiple boxes.
Madara, rated 140, sits squarely in the favoured rating band, is within the ideal age bracket at seven, and has strong course form at around 2m4f, including a lifetime-best effort over the New Course off this mark.
McLaurey and Down Memory Lane both come from powerful Irish yards who target this race, and they arrive with relatively low mileage over fences, leaving room for improvement.
Down Memory Lane has already advertised graded-level ability over shorter, and stepping up to 2m4f at Cheltenham could unlock more, especially if the gallop is strong from an early stage. That said, he has been lumbered with more than the ideal weight.
Will The Wise and Zurich appeal as solid each-way types who have been running well in competitive handicaps without being thrashed by the assessor, and both fit the age and distance pattern neatly.
Tips For The 2026 Plate Handicap Chase
Madara looks a logical headline selection given his handicap mark, course record and the endorsement from professional ratings, which suggest he could be ahead of the assessor.
For each-way and place-only players, Will The Wise, Zurich, and Downmexicoway offer a bit of value if their prices hold up on the day, all matching several key trends around trip, ratings band, and recent form.
In a race where a double-figure price winner is not uncommon, keeping one of those in mind as a “trends horse” could pay off if the more obvious candidates fail to fire.
Looking Ahead
With 23 runners, multiple plausible winners, and a track that tests every part of a handicap chaser’s game, the 2026 Plate Handicap Chase looks set to be a proper puzzle rather than a penalty kick for the market leader.
Madara, Down Memory Lane, and McLaurey give the race a strong spine at the head of the market, but a clutch of lightly raced, well-handicapped types lurk in behind and will be ready to capitalise if any of the principals falter.
From a betting point of view, it makes sense to build a position around one of the front-end horses and at least one trends-backed each-way play, rather than trying to cover half the field.
However you approach it, the Plate should again serve up a searching test and, quite possibly, a future graded performer emerging from the pack on the climb to the line.
BETFRED
