William Hill Name Cheltenham Festival Favourite They Fear Most
2 minutes The leading operator estimates that around £450 million will be wagered across the betting industry during the four-day meeting, with all 28 Cheltenham races ranking among their 31 biggest contests by turnover last year.
William Hill have identified Bambino Fever as the runner they fear most at this year’s Cheltenham Festival, with the mare expected to prove a costly result for the bookmaker in the Mares' Novices' Hurdle.
The leading operator estimates that around £450 million will be wagered across the betting industry during the four-day meeting, with all 28 Cheltenham races ranking among their 31 biggest contests by turnover last year. The only non-Cheltenham races on that list were the Grand National, Epsom Derby and Scottish Grand National.
Trained by Willie Mullins, Bambino Fever is currently priced at 4-5 for Thursday’s opening race. The mare already has proven Festival form, having won last season’s Champion Bumper at the track.
William Hill spokesman Lee Phelps said the market leader has become a major liability for the firm.
“Of the shorter-priced favourites at the meeting, Bambino Fever is a really bad result,” he said. “She’s been well backed in singles but is also a key leg of a lot of multiples.
“She looks a typical Willie Mullins hotpot at just 4-5 and continues to be backed with plenty of confidence.”
Two runners trained by Dan Skelton have also attracted significant market support and could deliver further losses for bookmakers. Supremely West is fancied in the Pertemps Final, while Kateira has been heavily backed for Wednesday’s BetMGM Cup, with her odds slashed from 40-1 to 15-2 in recent days.
“Other bad results would be the Dan Skelton-trained handicappers Supremely West and Kateira,” Phelps added. “Kateira has been smashed in the last week or so from 40s all the way into 15-2 second favourite for her race on Wednesday.
“The battle between us and the punters over the four days of the Cheltenham Festival is unrivalled in jump racing. We’re expecting around £450 million to be wagered over the four days, which makes it the most bet-on racing festival of the year and a hugely important week for us.
“One day the fancied runners can get beaten and everyone on the trading floor is cheering, and the next it can swing right back to the punters.”
