The first big Grade 1 Chase of the season in the UK is the Betfair Chase at Haydock. Every November some of the finest chasers on the planet descend on Haydock Park to fight it out for the £112k first prize. If the winner goes on to take the King George and Gold Cup, they will pick up a cool £1 million bonus for completing the Chase Triple Crown. In our Betfair Chase Betting Guide you will find a wealth of information on things like the best Betfair Chase bookies, tips and trends and interesting facts about the race. We look at the main protagonists for the 2021 renewal too, so if you want to know more…keep on reading!
Nigel Twiston-Davies is no stranger to training top class chasers. He sent out Imperial Commander to win the Cheltenham Gold Cup in 2010 and he also won this race in the same year. Twiston-Davies will be hoping to repeat the trick with Bristol De Mai, a 7yo son of Saddler Maker who romped home in this contest last season on heavy ground. The issue with backing Bristol De Mai ante-post is the fact he is a far better horse in testing conditions. If the ground happened to come up good or better it would be a huge blow to his chances, so keep a close eye on the weather forecast if you are considering backing him at odds of 3/1 with William Hill.
Might Bite was one of the stars of last season, winning three of his four starts and finding just Native River too good in the Gold Cup. The son of Scorpion didn’t run in this race last season, and if there is bottomless ground his trainer would likely swerve the Betfair Chase and instead focus on the King George VI Chase and the Cheltenham Gold Cup. However, if the ground is soft or better Might Bite would go off a lot shorter than his current odds of 3/1. He beat Bristol De Mai comfortably on good to soft at Aintree, and if they face off again on similar ground it is difficult to see a different outcome.
Last season’s Cheltenham Gold Cup hero Native River will be a threat to all if showing up for the Betfair Chase. This wonderfully consistent son of Indian River has won 8 of his 13 chase starts, never finishing out of the first three. He is all about galloping and staying power, but he wouldn’t want to see heavy in the ground description. He is at his very best when there is a slight ease in the ground and if he gets his optimum conditions he could be hard to beat. He can be backed ante-post for the Betfair Chase at odds of 3/1 and if he lines up at the start he will likely go off a lot shorter.
Waiting Patiently is by far the least exposed of all the main contenders for the 2021 Betfair Chase. The son of Flemensfirth was beaten into 2nd on his first two starts over timber back in 2015, but he is unbeaten in seven runs since. He has looked a natural over fences on soft/good to soft. Waiting Patiently has won all his of his chase starts and he broke his duck at Grade 1 level when beating Cue Card at Ascot back in February. He has yet to race beyond 21f so there is a slight question mark about his stamina, but he is undoubtedly a classy operator and he represents excellent each way value at odds of 8/1 with the race sponsors Betfair.
Terrefort is owned by the same connections as Bristol De Mai and the 5yo son of Martaline was a Grade 1 Novice Chase winner at Sandown and Aintree last season. He ran a cracker behind Shattered Love in the JLT at Cheltenham and he could be a force to be reckoned with in the chasing ranks this season. However, the stats are against Terrefort as no 5yo has ever won this race since it was first run in 2005. He is probably one to watch with an eye to the future, but if you do fancy his chances you can get on Terrefort ante-post at odds of 14/1.
Horse |
Betfair |
Bristol De Mai |
5/2 |
Might Bite |
3/1 |
Native River |
11/4 |
Waiting Patiently |
8/1 |
Terrefort |
10/1 |
Politologue |
14/1 |
Thistlecrack |
16/1 |
The three market leaders for the 2021 Betfair Chase have already established themselves as top class 3 mile chasers. The most unexposed horse in the field is probably Waiting Patiently, and Ruth Jefferson’s stable star has been penciled in for a possible return in this race. We think he is a potential superstar in the making and he could be a horse to follow in 2021/19. Even though he has yet to tackle three miles plus, his pedigree and running style suggest that stamina won’t be an issue. At odds of 8/1 with race sponsors Betfair, Waiting Patiently is our each way ante-post tip for the 2021 Betfair Chase.
The Betfair Chase was only introduced to the racing calendar in 2005 so trends are still emerging. However, a number of patterns have already become apparent and more often than not spotting the trends early can give you a big edge over the bookies. Our horse racing experts reveal some of the key trends to look out for if you are considering having a wager on the Betfair Chase.
Horse |
Trainer |
Jockey |
Age |
Bristol De Mai |
Nigel Twiston-Davies |
Daryl Jacob |
6yo |
Cue Card |
Colin Tizzard |
Paddy Brennan |
10yo |
Cue Card |
Colin Tizzard |
Paddy Brennan |
9yo |
Silviniaco Conti |
Paul Nicholls |
Noel Fehily |
8yo |
Cue Card |
Colin Tizzard |
Joe Tizzard |
7yo |
Silviniaco Conti |
Paul Nicholls |
Ruby Walsh |
6yo |
Kauto Star |
Paul Nicholls |
Ruby Walsh |
11yo |
Imperial Commander |
Nigel Twiston-Davies |
Paddy Brennan |
9yo |
Kauto Star |
Paul Nicholls |
Ruby Walsh |
9yo |
Snoopy Loopy |
Peter Bowen |
Seamus Durack |
10yo |
The Betfair Chase was introduced in 2005 as the first leg of a new ‘Chase Triple Crown’. This Grade 1 contest has been won by some legendary horses, including The King himself, Kauto Star. He won this race on no less than four occasions for Paul Nicholls, a trainer who has dominated the race with six wins in total. Colin Tizzard is another trainer with a more than decent record in the Betfair Chase, winning it three times.
The Betfair Chase is run over 3 miles 2 furlongs and if a horse manages to win the Betfair Chase, King George VI Chase and Gold Cup, connections collect a cool £1 million bonus. Kauto Star is the only horse that has won the Chase Triple Crown, and the trophy that is awarded to the winner of the Triple Crown is named after him. It takes a special sort of horse to win all three races and it will be fascinating to see if any of the current crop of chasers is good enough to do it.
As is the case with a lot of races at the highest level in horse racing, shock results are rare. As we outlined already in our Betfair Chase Trends section, 10 of the last 12 winners have been at, or near, the head of the betting. If you want to get the best value it usually pays to bet ante-post on the Betfair Chase, though ante-post wagers are always a risky proposition, especially for national hunt races.
If your horse doesn’t run, you lose your stake, but if that doesn’t put you off Betfair and Coral usually have the best ante-post prices for the Betfair Chase. Other popular wager types for the Betfair Chase are tricasts and forecasts, and in a race where the class horses usually dominate you have a decent chance of landing a decent payout for a relatively modest outlay.
We think it is massively important to utilise any promotions that bookies might be running for the Betfair Chase. You can find out more about the best Betfair Chase betting promotions below…
Here at Sportsbetting24 we highly recommend taking advantage of any promotions that bookies run for the Betfair Chase. If there is a big field you might be able to get an extra place for each way bets and Paddy Power are one of the best bookmakers for running extra place specials. Other bookmakers like Betfair and Coral are well known for their excellent Betfair Chase Betting Promotions too. Below we look back at some past promotions for the Betfair Chase as similar specials are sure to be on offer for this year’s renewal.
Given that Betfair are the race sponsors, it is no surprise that they usually have some of the best Betfair Chase specials around. In 2017 Cue Card was a short enough price for the race, but new Betfair customers could get 33/1 about him for the Betfair Chase. If there is another short priced favourite Betfair are likely to run another brilliant Betfair Chase enhanced odds special. So, make sure you keep an eye out as the race draws closer.