Willie Mullins is set to unleash a strong team of mares in the 2024 Mares’ Chase, which takes place at the Cheltenham Festival and the Closutton team will be spearheaded by the classy Dinoblue, who is one of the star attractions in the list of 17 runners entered for the Grade 2 event on day four of the National Hunt showpiece.
Second in the Grand Annual Handicap Chase at last year’s festival, Dinoblue has since gone on to land Grade 1 glory in the Paddy Rewards Club Chase over the Christmas period, while she chased home the red-hot Queen Mother Champion Chase favourite El Fabiolo in the Dublin Chase at Leopardstown last time out and heads to Cheltenham with some red-hot form in the book.
Runner-up in last year’s Mares’ Chase behind Impervious, Allegorie De Vassy is looking to go one better in the 2024 renewal and she will be another classy shot fired by the Mullins gun and she was an impressive Listed winner last time out at Naas.
There have only been three runnings of the Mares’ Chase, but all three have been trained in Ireland and they look to have another strong team heading over from the Emerald Isle and another that could feature prominently is the Gavin Cromwell-trained Limerick Lace, who continues to improve and was a Listed winner at Doncaster in late December. Cromwell could also unleash Brides Hill, who has won her last three outings and is another progressive performer and will be another that adds significant depth to the race, which is the penultimate race at the Cheltenham Festival.
Lucinda Russell’s Apple Away will be one of the shining beacons for the UK challenge and she has some decent form on her CV, while the likes of Carole’s Pass and Riviere D’etel are another couple of eye-catching entries.
Mares’ Chase 2024 Entries
| Number | Horse |
| 1 | Allegorie De Vassy |
| 2 | Brides Hill |
| 3 | Carole’s Pass |
| 4 | Dinoblue |
| 5 | Fantastic Lady |
| 6 | Found On |
| 7 | Harmonya Maker |
| 8 | Instit |
| 9 | Kestrel Valley |
| 10 | Limerick Lace |
| 11 | Marsh Wren |
| 12 | Mayhem Mya |
| 13 | Panic Attack |
| 14 | Pink Legend |
| 15 | Plenty Of Time |
| 16 | Riviere D’etel |
| 17 | Tweed Skirt |
Mares’ Chase Trends – Key Findings From Newest Race at the Festival
The Mares’ Chase was introduced to the Cheltenham Festival in 2021 and is now a mainstay of the final day of the meeting. Despite there being less evidence to work with, there are still some intriguing nuggets of information to work with regarding trends for the contest. Age The three winners to date have all…
Tue 13 Feb 2024