Cheltenham Handicap Weights: Festival handicap weights revealed

The Cheltenham Festival gets underway on March 12.

There are a record number of entries for the 11 handicaps at this year's Festival and today the weights for those races were revealed...

Irish champion trainer Willie Mullins boasts a formidable team for The Festival and he accounts for the joint or sole top-weight in five of the 11 handicaps including Uncle Junior in the Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase.
            
Following his victory in the Racing Plus Chase on Saturday, Opening Batsman would have to shoulder 12st 6 lb if he was to take up his engagement in the Pulteney Land Investments Novices' Handicap Chase or 12st 1 lb if running in the Fulke Walwyn Kim Muir Handicap Chase.
            
The David Pipe-trained Ballynagour, a facile winner on his British debut at Warwick last week, is now rated 148p by Timeform and has six possible targets at Cheltenham.
 
His Festival options are the JLT Specialty Handicap Chase, in which he has been allotted 11 stone, Coral Cup (10st 11 lb), Byrne Group Plate (10st 7 lb), Vincent O'Brien County Handicap Hurdle (10st 10 lb), Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys' Handicap Hurdle (11st 10 lb) and Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Handicap Chase (10st 7 lb).
 
Meanwhile, it will take a high weight to be one of the 24 to make the cut for the Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys' Handicap Hurdle with 37 entries on 11st 6lb or above.

Click HERE to view a full list of the Festival weights.

Look out for Brand new features with Timeform Race Passes - In-Play Hints, Running Notes & Warning Horses. Find out more at timeform.com.