Which Cheltenham Festival winners can repeat the feat this year?

The Cheltenham Festival is just around the corner and there will be plenty of horses bidding to repeat their heroics of 12 months ago. Delta Work, Energumene and A Plus Tard are just three examples as we analyse their chances of going back-to-back in their respective races.

Delta Work

Glenfarclas Chase (March 15, 4.10)

Delta Work's win in last year's Cross Country Chase is either considered a fantastic victory or a sickening success, depending on who you ask. He was well backed into 5-2 favourite before the off and downed Tiger Roll in a stirring finish, denying the dual Grand National winner a perfect swansong.

Gordon Elliott has sent some very classy chasers down the cross-country route in recent years and Delta Work will face serious competition this time from stablemate Galvin. We are yet to see the Grade 1-winning nine-year-old over these obstacles, but if he runs to a rating close to 165 then he would be extremely tough to beat.

Delta Work has the benefit of that cross-country experience, which does give him the edge, but as we saw last year, Elliott loves upsetting the apple cart in this race.

Energumene

Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase (March 15, 3.30)

The Champion Chase is set to be one of the races of the festival with three Grade 1 winners set to do battle up the hill once more. All three met in the rearranged Clarence House Chase on Trials day last month when Editeur Du Gite made all the running to hold off Edwardstone, with a disappointing Energumene finishing third.

Last year's Champion Chase winner surely did not run to his best form that day, however, and the 176-rated nine-year-old would be a class apart should he run to near that rating.

He goes on all ground, is tactically versatile and is the one they all have to beat despite that recent defeat. But this is a very competitive running and that makes his follow-up bid complicated.

Flooring Porter

Paddy Power Stayers' Hurdle (March 16, 3.30)

The Stayers' Hurdle picture has changed dramatically throughout the season and it is perhaps the most tricky race to piece together, especially with the looming threat of Marie's Rock taking her chance.

Flooring Porter has won the last two runnings of the race but has not enjoyed the best of seasons, suffering defeats to Home By The Lee at Navan and Leopardstown before meeting a setback.

Flooring Porter: can he make it a hat-trick of wins in the Stayers' Hurdle?Credit: Edward Whitaker

With Blazing Khal, Teahupoo and Home By The Lee set to take their chance and Marie's Rock's connections leaning towards a tilt at the race, Flooring Porter would need to be at his very best to make it a hat-trick, and that is something that could not be guaranteed.

A Plus Tard

Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup (March 17, 3.30)

A Plus Tard was a scintillating winner of last year's Gold Cup, defeating the defending champion Minella Indo by 15 lengths, but he was in nothing like that form on the only occasion we've seen him this season.

The nine-year-old was pulled up in the Betfair Chase at Haydock in November, and the fact he will have been absent for 118 days when the Gold Cup rolls around has to be considered a negative against such a classy field.

Galopin Des Champs, Noble Yeats and Bravemansgame have all had near perfect racecourse preparations and, with that in mind, it makes the case for A Plus Tard much harder.

Other possibles

Corach Rambler is set for the Grand National but he will first bid to replicate his heroics from 12 months ago, where he landed the most unlikely of successes in the Ultima Handicap Chase. He will be 6lb higher this time around, but Lucinda Russell's lightly raced chaser commands plenty of respect.

Marie's Rock may take her chance in the Stayers' Hurdle, but she also has the option of defending her crown in the Mares' Hurdle. Should she go that route, she could take on the likes of Honeysuckle and Love Envoi in what would be a pulsating clash.

Billaway is also on course to defend his title in the Hunters' Chase for Willie Mullins, while Elimay has been below her best this season and is a 25-1 chance to go back-to-back in the Mares' Chase.

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