Professional punter Andy Gibson on how to make a profit at Cheltenham

Is the festival a good meeting for betting on?

Generally it has been very good to me over the last 30-plus years. It is such a small sample size of races that nobody can guarantee making money in any given year, but sometimes it has tripled or quadrupled the money I’ve made during the season. This is because it’s the culmination of a season’s work. If you look at an early season race like the Shloer Chase, it can still require some guesswork as to how ready the horses will be for their first race: by the time they get to the Cheltenham Festival, if you’ve done the work I’ve done, you feel very confident you know which horses are falsely strong in the market, and that can sometimes give you a much bigger edge.

What are the keys to taking advantage of the ante-post markets?

One very important point is not to bet on a horse after it has just sparkled. If a horse wins impressively, people on TV tell you the price has been slashed and it becomes one to avoid. If you’re not already on, it’s too late. It’s better to think ahead to situations coming up where you think a particular horse has an excellent chance of being shown in his/her best light and having a predictive bet. Past examples for me include Champ winning the Challow at Newbury after I backed him in the morning at a double-figure price for the Ballymore, and Epatante winning the Christmas Hurdle when I backed her for the Champion on Boxing Day morning – one festival winner and one loser, as it turned out! I’ve waited a little longer this season and had my first ante-post bet only at the start of last month, which was in the Mares’ Chase.

Which is your favourite race to bet on?

In the Cheltenham Trail I cover 12 of the 14 Grade 1 races. I leave out the bumper as there is simply far more gossip, rumour and guesswork attached to that race. I omit the mares’ race as it has become a benefit for the top Irish trainers, so a lot of the lead-up races for the mares in Britain can be quite unimportant in how they impact on the festival race.