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Cheltenham Betting: England may have the chasers, but Ireland has it in the bumpers

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Wayne Bailey has good news for punters searching for an Irish winner at the Festival

A number of months back, this column discussed the perils of being patriotic when it comes to your betting. The English/Irish rivalry is part of what makes Cheltenham the greatest festival of horseracing in the world, but if you're out to make money, sentiment should be put aside. Don't get me wrong, as an Irishman there's nothing I love better than cheering home a locally trained winner at the expense of my neighbours across the water - but patriotism and sentiment have no place in the game of serious punting.

I've grudgingly accepted that Ireland won't be taking the big chases this year. I'd love to see us do it... but we wont and there's no question about it. So what should Irish punters do when the time comes to bet on the chases? It's simple: accept when we're beat, take our medicine, and back the English horses.

It happens on both sides though, and the English are just as bad. During my time spent in the racing game, I've met literally thousands of punters on both sides of the Irish Sea. Every year, I speak to English people who completely ignore the Irish form, and won't accept that we have certain races sewn up. Similarly, there's many an Irishman who places a 'patriotic' bet with 800 years of history spinning in his mind!

Ok, I'm not an emotionless anorak and I love a bit of rivalry, but if you want to be patriotic, then just watch and enjoy. If you're out to make a few quid, it's not your neighbouring country you should be taking on - it's whoever you're matched with on Betfair, and they could be from anywhere!

Once such race where the English need to put sentiment aside is Wednesday's Weatherby's Champion Bumper. First of all, lets look at the race history:

The race began in 1992 and since then, the prize money has remained in England on just three occasions. If you ignore what this tells you about Ireland's bumper preparation, you need your head examined.

Three Irish horses, namely Zaarito ([6.4]), Apt Approach ([6.8]) and Time Electric ([8.2]) head the market, and justifiably so.

Time Electric has had just one race for Thomas Mullins at Leopardstown over the Christmas festival. I was on hand to witness that race and he simply sauntered home. He's not well exposed, but history shows that most Champion Bumper winners have not raced before the New Year, and that they also won last time out. Time Electric falls right in to this category. He's entered in Sunday's bumper at Naas, so make sure you tune in to ATR at 5:15.

Willie Mullins' Apt Approach also has only one run under his belt, which he duly won in good style. I was lucky enough to see him race in a point-to-point previously however, where he looked certain to win before crashing through a fence and falling. He's a pretty impressive animal, and one we're sure to hear a lot about.

It's Zaarito that ticks all the boxes for me however. Wexford trainer Colm Murphy has been on the lookout for a horse to replace Brave Inca, and Zaarito may just be the one to do it. I've had a chat with a few people attached to the stable, and while I normally take stable 'tips' with a pinch of salt, Murphy is said to be extremely excited about this one. If you're thinking of backing him, I'd say get on now, as his price is sure to come in closer to the festival. He's had three wins from three starts, and quite simply destroyed his opposition earlier in the month at Naas.
Willie Mullins has an outside chance with Lilywhitedancer, but I've heard he's not been outstanding in training, and he'll have to put up a real fight to win a competitive bumper like this.

• Conclusion: While I'm siding with Zaarito for the win, it may be worth keeping Apt Approach onside in the place market.

It's fair to say that the Champion Bumper is not nearly as exciting as the mouth-watering Gold Cup battle we're all waiting for on the Friday, but for punting purposes, it simply can't be ignored.

Cheltenham is all about hype, excitement and rivalry, but when there are facts and form staring you in the face, don't ignore them.

* Have we called it right? More importantly, have we called it wrong? We welcome feedback, so put you're head on the block and post your opinions!