The Tingle Creek takes place at Sandown Park Racecourse every December, and this year is no different. Jam-packed with Grade 1 races, this truly is a festival to savour, helping racing fans to get in the Christmas spirit as the National Hunt calendar begins to unleash some of its big names in the 2024/25 campaign.
Plenty of top-class runners enter the Tingle Creek Festival, which can tee them up to bigger and better events as the season progresses. This is the perfect stage to kick-start a promising campaign for trainers and horses alike.
Racing legends such as Desert Orchid, Kauto Star and Moscow Flyer, to name a few, have all won the festival in years gone by, and racing spectators will be keen to see the next batch of superstars on the hallowed turf.
The Tingle Creek itself continues to produce eye-catching runners. If you had backed the previous 20 winners of the race next time out, you’d have banked yourself a profit with a staggering 13 winners.
This race is one to note, and those that finish in the top three are often predicted to have promising seasons. This is a spectacle that’s not to be missed, and below, we discuss why the festival has much more to offer than just the main event on Saturday.
Friday 6th December – Opening Day
The Winter Novices’ Hurdle, which is also known as the Esher Novices’ Hurdle, is a Grade 2 hurdle race for – yes, you’ve guessed it – novice hurdlers, and is an integral part of the December meeting at Sandown.
Held over a distance of two miles, it is one of the key hurdles races for emerging talent, and it can serve as a stepping stone for horses looking to prove themselves in higher-grade hurdles later in the season.
The race also offers invaluable experience for young hurdlers looking to make a name for themselves, often attracting horses that may have the potential to go on to contest Grade 1 events at the Cheltenham Festival. This is where many racing fans and punters make notes to find a horse at a big price that the bookmakers might have missed.
However, it is worth noting that the last five winners of the Winter Novices’ Hurdle that went on to compete at the Cheltenham Festival didn’t win their targeted races. This is certainly no disgrace to those winners, but more an indicator of how tough it is to win at Cheltenham, and how success in certain races doesn’t always guarantee results at a different racetrack.
Blazing Khal went on to win the Boyne Hurdle at Navan after winning at Sandown in 2021, and other big races are often targeted away from Cheltenham. Perhaps it is best to look at those with eye-catching performances behind the winners at Sandown. Horses staying on from a long way back to pinch a place are always worth revisiting further down the line.
It’s also important to not rule out a horse if they didn’t perform on the ground. Sandown can be very boggy at this time of year, whereas the Cheltenham Festival and Aintree can be rather dry by the time March and April come around.
Another popular race at the festival is the Esher Novices’ Steeple. This race is a prestigious Grade 2 National Hunt chase that is open to novice chasers aged four years and older. It covers a distance of two miles and four furlongs, over a challenging course that includes a series of 17 fences.
The Esher Novices’ Chase is a race known for its stern early-season test for up-and-coming chasers. Sandown’s course is extremely challenging due to its stiff fences and uphill finish, which makes it a true test of a novice chaser’s jumping ability, stamina and determination. A battling spirit is required to win, which is why this race often attracts some of the best young talent in the sport, with trainers targeting it as a proving ground for future stars in chasing.
If a horse can show signs of promise in this tough test, then Cheltenham is always an option due to its unforgiving hill on the final bend. However, once again, it’s not just Cheltenham that is the number one aim for trainers.
Horses that perform well in the Esher Novices’ Chase often go on to have successful careers in Grade 1 competitions, which is why it’s a crucial race for identifying future stars for both trainers and bettors.
In recent years, Irish-trained horses have not been frequent winners of this particular race. However, this is normally because Irish trainers save their horses for the main events – either Cheltenham or Aintree. So, if Irish horses are entered, they are definitely worth a second glance.
Both of these races, while very different in format, underscore Sandown’s status as a hub for top-quality National Hunt racing during the winter months. It provides a platform for potential rising stars as well as serving as a barometer for the season’s top talent.
Saturday 7th December – Chase Day
Saturday is the main event where the Tingle Creek Chase takes centre stage. It is known for producing some of the best jumps horses in history. The Tingle Creek Chase is one of the most anticipated Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechases in the British racing calendar.
Named after the popular chaser Tingle Creek, this prestigious race covers a distance of one mile and seven furlongs, with competitors required to jump 13 fences in total. The race is once again open to horses aged four years and above, and is a key early-season test for the top two-mile chasers.
The Tingle Creek is known for its fast pace, requiring both sharp jumping and agility in order to come out on top. The track at Sandown is technical and challenging, featuring a series of fences that come up quickly in succession, particularly down the famous back straight, which is known as the ‘Seven Barrows’. The final run-in includes a stiff uphill finish, which adds an extra layer of difficulty as tired legs are put to the test right until the finishing post.
Plenty of horses tackling the race will have one eye on the Queen Mother Champion Chase at the Cheltenham Festival. This isn’t a race for the weak, which is why only the best horses in the UK and Ireland are entered.
The most notable winners over recent years include Moscow Flyer, Kauto Star, Sprinter Sacre and Altior – all went on to have great success at the Cheltenham Festival.
Trainer Paul Nicholls is one to keep an eye on, as he has often targeted this race with his best chasers. Over the years, he has been successful in the Tingle Creek Chase with Politologue (2020) and Greaneteen (2021) – don’t underestimate the British in their own backyard, it seems.
However, the Irish won’t go down without a fight. This year, Willie Mullins will look to spring a surprise with Gentleman De Mee, a horse known to relish the conditions that winter brings.
The chaser won the Dublin Chase in February 2023, as well as the Maghull Novices’ Chase at the Aintree Festival back in 2022. The seven-year-old may not be the most exciting new horse in the race, but his impressive speed and bold jumping give him the perfect chance to walk away with the crown.
Another Irish contender this year is Pat Fahy’s Dunvegan. This horse is yet to win at the Cheltenham Festival, but has won a series of Listed events over in Ireland. The veteran prefers to adopt aggressive front-running tactics. ‘Catch me if you can’ will be the main takeaway from the 10-year-old.
Overall, the Tingle Creek remains one of the most thrilling races at the beginning of the National Hunt calendar, providing racing fans with a preview of potential stars for the rest of the season.
Whatever the outcome, we can expect a great start to the Christmas meetings
This particular festival can often go under the radar for casual racing fans and bettors, but it really shouldn’t. This is one of the first real occasions in the jumping season that we get to see potential superstars in action, and Sandown’s course isn’t for the weak.
Trainers want to test their next best prodigies for the upcoming season, and if they pass the test, then we’re likely to see more of them as the season progresses.
Whether over hurdles or fences, all routes around the track are demanding. And with the Festival taking place in December, heavy rain and bad weather can make the course even more gruelling. Keep an eye on the weather, and always check to see how your horses run in heavy ground before placing your bets.
So, secure a ticket and make the journey across, or grab a Racing Post, put the TV on and start making your own notes for potential eye-catching talent. If you need a place to put on your bets, look no further than Tonybet. We will be covering the festival, as well as all major racing festivals throughout the year. Head over there now to check out all the latest odds.
