Imperial Cup Betting Odds

Sandown Park hosts something of a Cheltenham Festival curtain-raiser on Saturday, with the Imperial Cup set to go off at 2.25pm and this two-mile encounter looks wide open. Lump Sum has been in the winners’ enclosure this term, with Sam Thomas training a seven-year-old who will be the top weighted horses in the race.

Go Dante is searching for his first win of the campaign, with Afadil a bit lower down the weights order. The Paul Nicholls-trained six-year-old could be a popular each-way selection, while Batman Girac will aim to bounce back from falling in his previous encounter. Bo Zenith and Wreckless Eric could also end up being decent contenders.

2025 Imperial Cup Betting Tips

Lump Sum was able to produce a smart performance at Newbury last month when finishing second in a field of seventeen runners. This came after a disappointing showing in the Christmas Hurdle at Kempton, although the latest showing saw the 16/1 shot run well over two miles on soft ground, with some quality horses beaten that day.

Go Dante finished seventh in that William Hill Hurdle race, with the horse performing well at odds of 28/1. Olly Murphy’s nine-year-old previously finished well down the order at Windsor in January, with the horse running at Cheltenham in the Greatwood Handicap Hurdle back in November without making much of an impression.

Afadil could be worth an each-way bet considering that the six-year-old was second last time out, with the horse running well at Musselburgh. That was in the Scottish County Handicap Hurdle when being narrowly edged out by a length, with that coming after a disappointing showing at Southwell on New Year’s Day.

Batman Girac was a faller last time out and it will be interesting to see how the five-year-old recovers when it comes to this encounter. The horse remains among the top weights, with the runner looking good when going down at Leopardstown, with that coming after a disappointing showing at the Irish track over the festive period.

2024 Imperial Cup Tips

The 2024 Imperial Cup takes place at Sandown Park on Saturday, with the runners and riders competing over two miles. This is a hot race where there are lots of horses that have a lively chance of victory, including the Ben Pauling-trained Jipcot and Bad. The former was a winner at Huntingdon at the beginning of the month and could go well.

The five length win against four other runners was a smart piece of racing, although Bad has regularly been hitting the frame this year and was recently second out of sixteen runners at Ascot. That came after wind surgery although previous form was decent enough, with the horse finishing third out of fourteen runners during the festive period.

Go Dante is an eight-year-old who runs for trainer Olly Murphy, with the horse having landed a victory this season. There was a third-placed finish in the Betfair Hurdle when sent off at betting odds of 14/1, with the horse acting well on the tacky ground at Newbury over two miles, half a furlong.

Making Headway has achieved a couple of nice wins this year, with the most recent success coming at Newbury when winning over two miles, half a furlong. The horse was sent off as the 6/4 favourite on that occasion, although punters are able to get a much bigger price here and the horse has hit the frame in three of his previous four outings.

2023 Imperial Cup Handicap Hurdle Betting Tips

Givega has managed to win three of his four outings this season and it explains why we’re seeing Gary Moore’s runner as the favourite with several horse racing betting sites. The seven-year-old was seen most recently winning at Sandown Park on 16 February, with the horse winning by seven and a half lengths and it was a flashy sort of performance.

Previously to this, the charge was pulled up at Warwick although that had been preceded by two wins and the first of the season came at Lingfield Park in November before the horse then claimed another victory when scoring at Fontwell against twelve other runners. He certainly looks like one for the shortlist and perhaps an each-way contender.

Iceo was a fairly impressive runner last time out at Sandown Park. Having been sent off as a 3/1 shot in a handicap hurdle on 7 January, the horse emerged from the pack to run a decent race and it was only Hardy Du Seuil who proved too strong in the end, with this race coming after nearly a year’s break for a horse who is trained by Paul Nicholls.

Playful Saint comes into this race off the back of a recent win at Leicester, with the horse impressing at this course during the festive period. Sent off as the 2/1 favourite over a distance of nearly two miles, there was a winning distance of twelve lengths and that came after a previously impressive showing when finishing second to Love Envoi at Sandown