WE'RE ALL UP FOR THE CUP!

Andy Newton looks at form and betting trends ahead of the big Chester May meeting

As we hot-foot into May, Chester hosts their biggest meeting of the season as the crowds will once again flock to the Chester May Meeting.

Racing fans can look forward to three cracking days on the Roodee – which, this year, is set to be staged between May 10-12. There are many decent races over the fixture that include the Dee Stakes, Ormonde Stakes, Chester Vase and Huxley Stakes, where some more Classic clues will also be on show.

However, despite being a handicap – the meeting is always spearheaded by the £150k Chester Cup – run on the final day (Friday).

Not so long ago, the big 2m2f race used to be run on the opening day of the meeting but has been switched to the Friday to give the meeting a chance to build up to it.

Being run over one of the longer trips on the flat, then it’s no surprise to see horses from jumping yards targeted at the race too and they’ve had a fair share of success in recent years. Backed up with NH stables like David Pipe, Donald McCain and Nicky Henderson winning since 2010.

Plus, despite a barren spell for the Irish in the race, they’ve turned the corner in recent years – having won the last two renewals with Dermot Weld winning in 2021 and Aidan O’Brien, who is often a big supporter of this meeting, breaking his duck in 2022 when Cleveland won under Ryan Moore.

Let’s take a look at some of the main Chester Cup trends. 

Age – Back in 2016, there was an eight-year-old winner – however, since 1986 all bar that winner were aged seven or younger. In more recent times, 19 of the last 20 (95%) winners were aged seven or younger too, while 14 of the last 20 successful horses were aged five, six or seven.