43 For The Entries Brown Advisory Novices Chase, But Who is The Favourite?

The Brown Advisory Novices Chase is one of those Cheltenham Festival races that serious jumping fans circle in the calendar the moment the dates come out… but then promptly forget they’ve done it because there are about 28 races to keep track of.

It’s the 3m1f Grade 1 for staying novice chasers on the Old Course, a proper test of jumping, stamina, and, by the third fence, everyone’s antepost nerve.

This year’s renewal is scheduled for Wednesday, 11 March 2026, at 2:00pm, and on paper, it looks absolutely stacked.

Forty-three horses hold entries, all officially dreaming of Festival glory and probably a nice photo on the owner’s mantelpiece.

There’s one catch, though: the race has a maximum field of 20. In 2025, only seven actually made it to the starting tape, giving it more of an exclusive feel than a Grade 1 handicap stampede.

Your long-range fancies may well end up in a different race, at a different trip, or having a quiet afternoon in their stable if connections lose their bottle.

What we can say already is that Cheltenham festival betting markets are very clear about one thing: this is Final Demand’s race to lose, at least on current evidence.

He’s been chalked up around even money in places, which is fairly punchy for a novice six weeks out from the Festival, no matter how shiny the reputation.

Final Demand – The Star Pupil

If you asked the layers to draw their ideal Brown Advisory favourite in crayon, they’d probably come up with something suspiciously similar to Final Demand.

He’s a 7‑year‑old gelding by Walk In The Park, trained by Willie Mullins for Bryan Drew and Professor Caroline Tisdall, and he has that annoyingly tidy profile that makes traders nervous and punters brave.

His overall record is five wins from six starts under rules, including three Grade 1-level performances in his last four runs.

He began his rise over hurdles at Limerick in December 2024, bolting up in a novice event over around 2m5f on soft ground, and never really looked back.

From there, he climbed the ladder quickly, winning a Grade 1 over 2m6f at Leopardstown in early 2025, then running a huge race in third in the Turners Novices Hurdle Grade 1 over 2m5f at Cheltenham.

He confirmed that impression by landing another Grade 1 at Punchestown over 2m4f in the spring, travelling like the best horse throughout before galloping clear in the closing stages.

Well rested after his Summer break, he returned this season at Navan in November 2025 and did what good horses do when sent off at 2/7: he jumped cleanly, cruised into it, and won by a staggering 13L, looking every inch a proper staying chaser in the making.

He then headed back to Limerick to win the Grade 1 Faugheen Novice Chase, and despite a poor performance at Leopardstown last time out, he now sits comfortably at the top of the antepost betting markets for Cheltenham on odds of around 9/2.

The downside, if you’re being picky, is that there’s not a huge amount of juice in that price, given how far we still are from tapes up and how many things can go wrong between now and then.

Betting On The Brown Advisory

Antepost betting on a race like this is a balancing act between getting a nice price and not ending up with a non‑runner and a sad-looking docket in the kitchen drawer.

With only about 20 places in the line-up and 43 entries on the list, there’s every chance some of these smart novices will be redirected to other Festival races or kept back for the Irish spring festivals instead.

If you like Final Demand, you’re basically making a judgment on two things: his chance of showing up in one piece and his chance of still being the best horse if he does.

At around 9/2, the market is saying he’s significantly more likely than not to get the job done, which feels fair on form but doesn’t leave much wriggle room if a rival suddenly posts a big performance in the next few weeks.

It might be a race where some punters decide to wait for the day‑of market and take slightly shorter odds in return for the nice warm feeling of “non‑runner, no bet”.

If you’d rather fish in slightly deeper waters, a few of the current antepost prices do look tempting each‑way.

One obvious candidate is Romeo Coolio, trained by Gordon Elliott, who sits around the 6/1 mark. However, he also holds entries for the Arkle and Ryanair Chase, so he could go in any direction.

Then there’s The Big Westerner for Henry de Bromhead, hovering in the 8/1 zone depending on which firm you look at. With form figures that put him nicely in the frame, he could run a really good race.

If you’re in the business of sniffing out bigger‑priced each‑way pokes, horses like Western Fold, Wendigo, Koktail Divin, and Salver are all trading a little higher but still firmly in the front half of the market. Each has shown enough over intermediate trips to suggest that three miles at a strong gallop won’t frighten them.

For the more patient punter, it may also pay to track news on how these novices are campaigned in late January and February: one good trial performance at Leopardstown or Sandown can tighten a price overnight.

And, as ever, checking each‑way terms, non‑runner‑no‑bet offers and price boosts on the day will matter just as much as picking the right horse.

Favourite For A Reason, But Not A Formality

Final Demand is exactly the sort of horse this race is designed for: progressive, classy, and already proven at the highest level over intermediate trips, with the profile of one who should relish stretching out to the full 3m1f.

His unbeaten start over fences, rock‑solid Grade 1 record, and powerful Mullins operation behind him all justify his status at the head of the market, even if the current price isn’t what you’d call generous.

That said, Cheltenham has a long memory for “good things” that didn’t quite go to plan, and there are enough lurking threats in the entries to keep this from feeling like a lap of honour.

With 43 entries whittling down to a likely single‑figure field, and trainers still juggling options, the Brown Advisory looks set to offer that familiar Festival puzzle: a short‑priced favourite with all the right credentials, and just enough interesting alternatives to make you double‑check your staking plan before you click “confirm bet”.