Sean Bowen Cheltenham 2026 day two rides blog: 'He seems very straightforward, and he stays well'

2.40 – Rambo T

Rambo T won his big handicap at the start of the season, and things have been quite tough for him since then. This is another ultra-competitive race, and being honest, he could find it difficult again.

He’s still a few pounds higher than he was when he won at Chepstow, so he probably needs to get back down to that sort of mark to be winning another race like this. Cheltenham handicaps are never easy, and you need everything to fall right, but we’ll go there and give it our best shot.

4.00 – Libberty Hunter

I was happy enough with Libberty Hunter when he ran at Newbury behind Lulamba. It was probably his first run back since this race last year where he showed his old spark, so that was encouraging going into the Festival.

He’s a strong stayer at two miles, and if the rain arrived, it certainly wouldn’t do him any harm. He won’t get caught out for early speed, but he should be doing his best work late on, a bit like he did at Newbury.

It’s a strong renewal of the Queen Mother Champion Chase. The Irish runners are strong, especially Majborough, who was excellent at the Dublin Racing Festival. However, I think L’Eau du Sud could be the one we have to beat. His run at the Shloer Chase was excellent, and he should be fresh for this assignment.

It’s one of the races of the week, and I’m really looking forward to riding in it.

5.20 – Broadway Ted

My last ride of the day is Broadway Ted in the bumper for Gordon Elliott. He’s two from two so far, and he’s done everything very nicely.

He bolted up for me in a bumper at Ayr at the start of December and then followed that up with another impressive win at the Dublin Racing Festival. He seems very straightforward, and he stays well, which is always important in these Cheltenham bumpers.

Both of his runs have been on heavy ground, but it looks like he might get nicer ground here. Being by Getaway, I don’t think better ground will be any issue for him at all.

It looks like a competitive contest, as you’d expect at the Festival, but he’s got a lively chance, and hopefully he can run a big race.

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