Cotswold Chase

The Cotswold Chase is a Grade 2 race over an extended three miles and a furlong at Cheltenham in January. The race is a trial for the Cheltenham Gold Cup in March.

Early winners of the event include Little Owl (1981), Master Oats (1995), One Man (1997) and See More Business (1998 and 2001).

In more recent years the race has been won by Grand National winners Neptune Collonges (2011) and Many Clouds (2015 and 2017).

The Cheltenham Cotswold Chase takes place in January 2023.

Find out more about the Cotswold Chase:

Cotswold Chase

Race Overview – The Cotswold Chase

Horses five years old or older may compete in the Grade 2 National Hunt steeplechase, the Cotswold Chase. 

There are twenty-one obstacles to jump throughout the race, which is run over a distance of approximately 3 miles and 112 furlongs (3 miles 1 furlong and 156 yards, or 5,172 metres), on the New Course at Cheltenham.

Cotswold Chase 2023 Odds

The Cotswold Chase odds are listed below:

2.25 Cheltenham (Race 6) - BOG
  • Date: Saturday 28th of January 2023
  • Time: 14:25
  • Details: 6 Runners Chase Chase 3m 1f 56y
3 Protektorat
13/8
2 Noble Yeats
11/4
6 Sounds Russian
13/2
4 Ahoy Senor
7/1
1 Frodon
14/1
5 Dusart
16/1

Cotswold Chase 2023 Tips

The Cotswold Chase tips are below:

  • 2 points to win for PROTEKTORAT at odds of 13/8
  • 1 point each way for NOBLE YEATS at odds of 9/4

Many Cotswold Chase horses will race in more races throughout the years. Stay updated on the horses and place ante-post bets if you want to wager on them.

If you are searching for more horse racing tips for events taking place at Cheltenham then check out our Cheltenham Racecourse tips page.

Cotswold Chase Previous Winners

Year Winner Age Jockey Trainer
1980Raffi Nelson7Steve Smith EcclesNicky Henderson
1981Little Owl7Jim Wilson[a]Peter Easterby
1982Lesley Ann8Colin BrownDavid Elsworth
1983Combs Ditch7Colin BrownDavid Elsworth
1984Everett9Stuart ShilstonFulke Walwyn
1985West Tip8Richard DunwoodyMichael Oliver
1986Misty Spirit7Steve Smith EcclesD Lee
1988Twin Oaks8Paul CroucherDavid Murray Smith
1989Deep Moment7Dermot BrowneMercy Rimell
1990Toby Tobias8Mark PitmanJenny Pitman
1991Celtic Shot9Peter ScudamoreCharlie Brooks
1993Sibton Abbey8Steve Smith EcclesFerdy Murphy
1994Dubacilla8Dean GallagherHenry Cole
1995Master Oats9Norman WilliamsonKim Bailey
1997One Man9Richard DunwoodyGordon W. Richards
1998See More Business8Timmy MurphyPaul Nicholls
1999Cyfor Malta6Tony McCoyMartin Pipe
2000Looks Like Trouble8Norman WilliamsonNoel Chance
2001See More Business11Mick FitzgeraldPaul Nicholls
2002Rince Ri9Ruby WalshTed Walsh
2003Behrajan8Richard JohnsonHenry Daly
2004Jair du Cochet7Jacques RicouGuillaume Macaire
2005Grey Abbey11Graham LeeHoward Johnson
2006See You Sometime [b]11Andrew ThorntonSeamus Mullins
2007Exotic Dancer7Tony McCoyJonjo O'Neill
2008Knowhere10Paddy BrennanNigel Twiston-Davies
2009Joe Lively10Joe TizzardColin Tizzard
2010Taranis9Nick ScholfieldPaul Nicholls
2011Neptune Collonges9Tony McCoyPaul Nicholls
2012Midnight Chase10Dougie CostelloNeil Mulholland
2013Cape Tribulation9Denis O'ReganMalcolm Jefferson
2014The Giant Bolster9Tom ScudamoreDavid Bridgewater
2015Many Clouds7Leighton AspellOliver Sherwood
2016Smad Place9Richard JohnsonAlan King
2017Many Clouds9Leighton AspellOliver Sherwood
2018Definitly Red9Danny CookBrian Ellison
2019Frodon7Bryony FrostPaul Nicholls
2020Santini8Nico de BoinvilleNicky Henderson
2021Native River[c]11Richard JohnsonColin Tizzard
2022Chantry House8Nico de BoinvilleNicky Henderson
2023Ahoy Senor8Derek FoxLucinda Russell

Famous Cotswold Chase Winners

The Cotswold Chase was first run in 1980 with victory going to Raffi Nelson, trained by Nicky Henderson and ridden by Steve Smith-Eccles. 1981 winner Little Owl won the Cheltenham Gold Cup for Peter Easterby and Amateur rider Jim Wilson.

David Elsworth trained the next two winners with Lesley Ann and Combs Ditch. 1985 winner West Tip was a faller when going well in the Grand National that year. He returned the following season to win the race for Trainer Michael Oliver and jockey Richard Dunwoody.

West Tip became an Aintree regular, running in six successive Nationals and finishing runner-up in 1989 at the age of twelve.

The high quality of Cotswold Chase winners was maintained through the 1980s and 1990s. Toby Tobias (1990), Celtic Shot (1991) and Dubacilla (1994) were all Gold Cup class. The 1995 winner Master Oats won the Cheltenham Gold Cup for Kim Bailey and Norman Williamson. He ran in three Grand Nationals but never recaptured his best form and was retired in 1998.

1997 winner One Man never won the Gold Cup but he did win the King George VI Chase in 1995 and 1996. His other notable successes included the Ascot Chase and the Queen Mother Champion Chase in 1998.

See More Business became the first dual winner of the Cotswold Chase in 1998 and 2001. He won the Cheltenham Gold Cup in 1999, the King George VI Chase in 1997 and 1999 and the Betfair Bowl in 2000.

Looks Like Trouble won the Cotswold Chase and the Cheltenham Gold Cup in 2000 for Trainer Noel Chance.

The most recent Gold Cup winner to add their name to the roll of honour was Native River in 2021. He won this race as an eleven-year-old having won the Gold Cup in 2018 for Colin Tizzard and Richard Johnson.

Many Clouds won the race in 2015 and 2017 and would also go on to become an Aintree legend. He won the Grand National in 2015, the first horse to win that race and the Hennessy Gold Cup in the same season. After a prolonged duel with Thistlecrack in this race in 2017 he tragically collapsed and died. He paid the ultimate price for his sheer determination to win, a sad end to a glorious career.

Cotswold Chase Previous Result

Key Cotswold Chase Trials

Previous Cheltenham form is a key factor for winners of the Cotswold Chase. All twelve recent winners of this race had already run at least twice at Cheltenham and eight of them had recorded at least one victory.

Ten of the last twelve winners ran in the Cheltenham Gold Cup but all were defeated. Santini finished second for Nicky Henderson in 2020 and The Giant Bolster finished third for David Bridgwater in 2014.

Frodon won this race in 2019 for Paul Nicholls who resisted the temptation to run in the Gold Cup in favour of the shorter Ryanair Chase. The decision was vindicated with a memorable victory for Frodon and Bryony Frost.

Cotswold Chase Betting Trends

Favourites have a surprisingly poor recent record in the Cotswold Chase. Only two favourites have obliged in the past twelve seasons; Santini at 13-8 in 2020 and Chantry House at 5-6 in 2022, both trained by Nicky Henderson and ridden by Nico de Boinville.

There have also been two winning second favourites and two third favourites. The longest-priced winner during that period was Many Clouds at 8-1 in 2017.

The race usually attracts only a small field, reaching double figures only once in those 12 seasons. That was in 2013 when Cape Tribulation won at 7-1 for Malcolm Jefferson.

The Cotswold Chase tends to be won by established chasers.

The youngest winner in history was Cyfor Malta as a six-year-old in 1999.

There have been four winning eleven-year-olds, the most recent being Native River in 2021.

Cotswold Chase – Top Trainers and Jockeys

Paul Nicholls has won the Cotswold Chase five times; See More Business (1998 and 2001), Taranis (2010), Neptune Collonges (2011) and Frodon (2019).

Nicky Henderson has four victories to his credit in this race dating back to inaugural winner Raffi Nelson (1980). His second winner was forty years later with Santini (2020) and he followed up two years’ later with Chantry House (2022).

Steve Smith-Eccles, Tony McCoy and Richard Johnson all won the Cotswold Chase on three occasions. Johnson’s three victories came aboard Behrajan (2003), Smad Place (2016) and Native River (2021).

Betting on the Cotswold Chase

The Cotswold Chase has not been a major pointer to the Cheltenham Gold Cup in recent years with the most influential trials taking place in Ireland. However, it is still a high-quality contest and is capable of producing a live contender for Cheltenham or for the Aintree Grand National.

One of the highlights of Cheltenham Trials Day in January.

Facts about the Cotswold Chase

  • The Cotswold Chase is a National Hunt steeplechase in England which is open to horses aged five years or older.
  • The race is run on the New Course at Cheltenham Racecourse over a distance of 3 miles and 2 furlongs (5,331 metres), and during its running, there are 21 fences to be jumped.

Summary of the Cotswold Chase

Thank you for reading our Cotswold Chase guide.

A top-class in its own right, it is also a key Cheltenham Gold Cup trail. We have looked at history, trends, betting, tips and more.

We hope you enjoy this year’s race!

Resources

Other Popular Horse Races in January

Here are all of January’s horse racing-related posts:

As the Founder of British Racecourses, I have a life-long passion for horse racing and have loved the sport as long as I can remember. I am also a keen racehorse owner and have worked in the gambling industry for several years. I set up British Racecourses with the desire to share my passion for racing with other like-minded people.