A big-priced acca for Cheltenham -'Golden triple'

The Cheltenham Festival is just five weeks away and is starting to shape up very well, with every race looking competitive.

There’s still plenty of opportunity in the ante-post markets and Lee Sharp has picked out a big price each-way treble for the Prestbury Park extravaganza.

Brown Advisory Novice Chase - Kappa Jy Pyke

Final Demand had been all the rage for the Brown Advisory, but the hype train was very much derailed at the Dublin Racing Festival when he was a very disappointing third. I’m sure many horses will use ground as an excuse, but nevertheless he did not look like an even money favourite as he was for the Brown Advisory before that race. However he still heads the market, with Kaid d’Authie, who beat him on Sunday, in second.

Both of those are trained by Willie Mullins but there’s another one of his further down the market who is potentially overlooked, Kappa Jy Pyke. Unlike the first in the market, he’s unbeaten over fences, beating Grade 1 hurdle winner Salvator Mundi on debut, and seeing off Jacob’s Ladder, who won a big handicap at Leapstown over the weekend.

Mullins won the Brown Advisory with an outsider last season and it could be a similar story this year with Final Demand flopping at the DRF. Kappa Jy Pyke is yet to tackle three miles but he looks to have stamina in abundance, and is a lively underdog if Mullins sends him to Cheltenham.

It would be a fairytale ending and he is a three-time winner at the Festival. He will be arriving here fresh, while other rivals have featured in some gruelling races.

Lee Sharp on Envoi Allen

Albert Bartlett Novice Hurdle - Jalon d’Oudaries

The Albert Bartlett is typically a big field, competitive Grade 1, with plenty of novices who were beaten over shorter, taking their chance up in trip. One who will likely do so is the Gordon Elliott-trained Jalon d’Oudaries. The one time Champion Bumper favourite in 2024, actually finished third to 2025 Albert Bartlett winner Jasmin Des Vaux in the 2024 edition.

He missed last season, but returned this term and has finished second twice over two miles and two and half miles, with significant improvement on the second run when upped in trip. It would be no surprise if he was to take a chance in an Albert Bartlett and at big odds he is worth taking a chance on.

Gold Cup - Envoi Allen

It’s an extremely tough ask for a 12-year-old to win any race at the Cheltenham festival let alone the Gold Cup, but that is what Envoi Allen will bid to do when he lines up in what will be the final race of his career.

It would be a fairytale ending and he is a three-time winner at the Festival. He will be arriving here fresh, while other rivals have featured in some gruelling races throughout the season.

He showed he still has the class at Down Royal when winning the Champion Chase there for the third time, beating Affordale Fury and Western Fold

Affordable Fury went on to win the Savills Chase next time out and Western Fold has placed in a grade one since. At big odds, Envoi Allen could be overpriced.