THE CHELTENHAM FESTIVAL 2021: ITV SCHEDULE AND HIGHLIGHTS

ITV racing will be on ITV daily from 1pm-4.30pm and broadcast six live races a day. The Opening Show is on daily on ITV4 from 9.30-10.30am.

The Cheltenham Festival 2021, supporting WellChild, offers four days of extraordinary racing. With sporting events still behind closed doors, the ITV racing team led by Ed Chamberlin and Francesca Cumani will take viewers to the heart of the action, so they don’t miss a thing.

ITV Racing will broadcast six races a day in a three-and-a-half hour live show as well as the Opening Show daily on ITV4.

Tuesday 16 March The Unibet Champion Hurdle is the feature on the first day as reigning champion Epatante defends her crown again the Irish female duo of Honeysuckle and Rachael Blackmore. The home challenge will be led by the father-son combination of trainer and jockey Gary and Jamie Moore, with their horse Goshen aiming to make up for his last fence blunder at the Festival last year.

Wednesday 17 March The Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase is always one of the races of the week and this year is no exception as Ireland and England go head-to-head again with the Willie Mullins trained hot favourite, Chacun Pour Soi, very much the one to beat against the home challenge of Altior, the dual winner of the race in 2018 and 2019, and last year’s winner, Politilogue. And will Tiger Roll, the dual Grand National winner, who won the Glenfarclas Cross Country race in 2018 and 2019, make it a fifth Cheltenham Festival success en route to further Aintree glory?

Thursday 18 March The Paddy Power Stayers Hurdle will once again be a race to savour with Paisley Park, for popular owner Andrew Gemmell, aiming to regain his crown, and Thyme Hill, the young pretender, out to ruin the fairy tale. The Ryanair Chase will be equally competitive with Imperial Aura for trainer Kim Bailey trying to fend off the Irish battalions surrounding him at the head of the market.

Friday 19 March The WellChild Cheltenham Gold Cup, is the showpiece of the week and Al Boum Photo sets out to emulate Best Mate and win the race for the third time. He is up against the JP McManus owned Champ, who would be an equally popular winner - or could Bryony Frost be the first woman to win this race on her front-running Frodon?