Cheltenham Festival Announce Cross Country and Turners Novices’ Chase To Become Handicaps in 2025

The Cheltenham Festival 2025 race programme has been given a revamp ahead of the four-day March meeting – with the Turners’ Novices Chase and the Cross Country Chase both now becoming handicaps.

Turners Novices’ Chase and Cross Country Chase To Become Handicaps in 2025

In recent years the Cheltenham Festival has come increasingly more under the spotlight – with some horse racing fans moaning about the hiked ticket prices and general overall cost of attending the four-day meeting.

As a result, the course had reported that Festival attendance figures were down in 2024 from the two previous years.

While another area that’s been talked about plenty of late is – should the meeting have more (or less) days and should the current races on the schedule be revamped, changed or even added to with new contests?

Well, it seems the Cheltenham officials and the BHA are listening after announcing in the middle of September both the Turners Novices’ Chase and the Country Chase will now BOTH become handicaps in 2025.

Turners Novices’ Chase To Lose Grade One Status and Become an Open Handicap

The Turners Novices’ Chase is a fairly new race to the Cheltenham Festival schedule – being first run in 2011, when initially sponsored by Jewson.

Known as the Golden Miller Novices’ Chase – but had the ‘Turners’ tag added due to being the sponsors and is run on the New Course over a trip of 2m4f.

JLT also sponsored the race between 2014 and 2019, with the contest renamed the Marsh Novices’ Chase in 2020 with the merger of JLT/Marsh, with transport company taking over the sponsorship reins in 2022.

The race was won 12 months ago by the Dan Skelton-trained Grey Dawning (watch below).

However, in 2025 the Turners Novices’ Chase will now become an open novice handicap, with the race coming under the spotlight in recent years for not attracting enough runners.

In 2022 only four horses took part in the race with the two-time Gold Cup winner Galopin Des Champs famously falling at the final fence that year.

This move will bring back a novice handicap chase at the Cheltenham Festival with Turners managing director Paul Day telling the Racing Post – “I understand why the changes are being made but ultimately I think the Cheltenham Festival should be about the best competing against the best rather than handicaps. It’s disappointing, but it is what it is.”

The Arkle and Brown Advisory Novices’ Chases Should See More Runners

The switch is also widely expected to make both the Arkle Novices’ Chase and the Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase more competitive races – with horses that would have run in the Turners now hopefully running in these.

Noble Prince was the first ever winner of the Turners, with AP McCoy riding back in 2011. While other top horses like Vautour (2015), Yorkhill (2017) and Samcro (2020) have been past winners of the race.

While top Cheltenham Festival trainer Willie Mullins had won the Turners Novices’ chase four times over the years – with Sir Des Champs, Vautour, Black Hercules and Yorkhill.

Last Five Winners Of The Turners’ Novices Chase

Cross Country Chase Also To Be Run As A Handicap At The 2025 Cheltenham Festival

In a two-pronged change, it was also announced the ‘love it, or hate it, marmite Cross Country Chase will now also be reverting back to being a handicap in 2025.

The Cross Country Chase was first introduced to the Cheltenham Festival in 2005 as a handicap, but in 2016 was changed to a conditions race. With the JP McManus-owned Spot Thedifference winning the first running.

Many feel that since this change, the Cross Country has been dominated those at the head of the ratings. With a lot of the other runners in the race having little chance running against these sorts off level weights.

Grand National Winner Tiger Roll Won The Cross Country Three Times

Former two-time Grand National winner Tiger Roll won the Cross Country three times between 2018 and 2021, while the last two runnings (2022 and 2023) have been taken by Delta Work (watch below).

However, note last year’s race (2024) was called off due to the Cross Country track being waterlogged.

The Cross Country race at the Cheltenham November and December Meetings are a both run as handicaps, which will now bring the Festival race into line with these.

Trainer Enda Bolger had dominated the race in it’s early years – winning the prize five times. While, in more recent years, its the Gordon Elliott team that have made the race their own. Winning the pot five times since 2017.

Gordon Elliott needs one more win in the race to become the winning most trainer on his own.

Last Five Winners Of The Cross Country Chase