Ryanair Chase Betting Tips 2021 – Melon can finally gethis head in front at Cheltenham

The Ryanair Chase comes on Day 3 of the Cheltenham Festival and it is a Grade 1 contest over 2m4f ran on the New Course. It looks set to be one of the most open rules races of the Festival this year with three horses all available at 6/1.

We have seen some great winners in recent times including the fan favourite Un De Sceaux jumping like a stag on his way to victory in 2017 to the emotional scenes in 2019 when Frodon went on to win under Bryony Frost.

This year’s contest is wide open and looks set to be one of the best races of the whole week.

Ryanair Chase Preview

This race has been won by some wonderful horses in recent seasons including Cue Card, the late Vautour and Alberta’s Run. The likes of Frodon, Min and A Plus Tard all lined up in the 2020 renewal which was won by Min.

The Irish came for Min and he was a well backed winner at odds of 2/1, and is likely to return to defend his crown in 2021. This is currently a wide open race with Min the 6/1 favourite.

You can see the fancied runners below and the latest Ryanair Chase betting tips.

Ryanair Chase Main Contenders

Min
Allaho
Saint Calvados
Imperial Aura
Melon

Min

Min is the right favourite for the race given he won the race last year where he beat Saint Calvados by a neck with Gold Cup contender A Plus Tard back in third.

He has since returned to action at Punchestown at the start of December winning the Grade 1 John Durkan Chase by 1l jumping well and looking as well as ever. He has strong consistent form and is a worthy market leader.

Allaho

It looks like they have finally got to the bottom of Allaho, which seems to be making the most of his jumping in a strong run 2m4f/2m5f. Having made a poor comeback in the John Durkan in the fog, Allaho went on to finish an honourable fourth in the Savills Chase at Christmas.

The Mullins camp were underwhelmed by that effort though, and the Kinloch Brae at Thurles was a hail mary, it was now or never. Luckily for those involved with the horse, it was now. He put in a big effort to beat Elimay, who has a wonderful chance in the Mares Chase, with the two a long, long way clear of fair standard-bearers in Annamix and Balko Des Flos. His jumping was clean and precise and found a fair bit for pressure when it was required, winning snugly at the line. Paul Townend suggested that he might still come on for that run, which is a good sign for his backers also.

Saint Calvados

Saint Calvados who was second in the 2020 race was an eye-catcher in the King George where he travelled really well but didn’t get home over the 3m distance. He will be trained with this race in mind but the price has gone from a punting perspective.

Imperial Aura

Imperial Aura started the season with two good wins at Carlisle and Ascot. However, he fell last time out at Kempton and I would want to see him again prior to the Ryanair Chase to ensure that fall hasn’t knocked his confidence.

Melon

Melon has a fine Cheltenham Festival record. He has been second in four Cheltenham Festival races including twice in the Champion Hurdle. He was so unlucky last year in the Marsh Novices Hurdle where he was touched off by a nose behind Samcro.

He often tends to need his first run of the season but he ran a decent seasonal debut behind Min where he finished third beaten 7l. He then stepped up to 3m over Christmas for the Savills Chase and he travelled beautifully, jumping like a stag from the front to finish third. His performance at the Dublin Racing Festival probably wasn’t as bad as the fifth place finish suggests and he does seem to save his best for Cheltenham.