Key Points
- Today’s betting tip already has has big field handicap experience
- He is bred to stay so he should improve for this step up in trip
- This horse should perform much better with some decent ground
We had a lovely result yesterday with Break My Soul running a cracker in the Grand Annual. She travelled into the race classily and traded 1.54 in-running as a result. However, she just came up short at the line, being defeated by less than a length in a three way finish. Advised at 16/1, she went off at 20/1 and regardless of which price you got, you would have enjoyed a healthy profit! Today I have another each way selection for you and this one comes in the Jack Richards Novices' Limited Handicap Chase on Day 3 of the 2026 Cheltenham Festival.
In addition, I have already published three other articles with betting tips for:
I advise caution with the last of the three, as the ground has gone against my selection being on the faster side.
If you’re just finding my content due to the Cheltenham Festival, then welcome! My name is Gav and you may know me from X as RacingGav, where I have amassed 16,000 followers sharing my horse racing content. I have now been the resident horse racing expert here since the last Cheltenham Festival, and you are more than welcome to
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Betting advice
- 14:00 Cheltenham (Jack Richards Novices' Limited Handicap Chase) -
Meetmebythesea
@ 13/2 (5 places, 1/4 odds) -
1pt each way
William Hill have the best terms all round on Meetmebythesea
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Meetmebythesea will meet his connections in the winners enclosure!
The Grade 2 Jack Richards Novices' Limited Handicap Chase will undoubtedly be a competitive affair. However, I think Meetmebythesea could be a huge improver for the Ben Pauling stable and JP McManus. If I’m correct on this, he could be a really tough nut to crack. In this article, I’ll be breaking down my reasoning for tipping him, so keep reading on in order to understand my logic.
Meetmebythesea already has big field handicap experience
In any big field handicap, having experience of similar scenarios is a huge advantage. As you will often see runners go from small field races with no hustle and bustle to a race like this and it fries their brain. However, in a Novice handicap, I think it’s even more crucial.
Whilst Meetmebythesea has been running in fields of five or six runners this season, he does have big field handicap experience. Around this time last year, he was targeted at the EBF Final at Sandown and he ran in that 18 strong field. He took a keen hold that day but ran a huge race to be beaten less than a length at the line. Whilst I’m sure his connections were disappointed not to win, I’m sure that experience will be invaluable to him in this Cheltenham Festival handicap.
Similarly I’d also expect this handicap to be run at a strong pace and there are some very classy horses taking part. However, it shouldn’t be anything Meetmebythesea hasn’t seen before having taken part in the Game Spirit Chase (Grade 2) last time out. That run was perfect for a trio of reasons. It first and foremost got him qualified for this race, it will have also taught him a lot and as he had no chance of winning it, it protected his mark for this chase handicap debut.
Meetmebythesea is bred to stay and should improve for the step up in trip
Meetmebythesea was sired by a tough, classy stayer - Watar, who won at Group and Listed level over stayer trips in France. He is also out of Lake Wakatipu who was a winner over staying trips on the Flat and 2m6f over hurdles. Between this pedigree and the fact he placed second (and was keeping on) in a 3m Irish PTP on Heavy ground, you would expect him to be running over trips further than the 2m minimum.
In all five starts over 2m prior to his latest one in the Game Spirit, he has been staying on strongly over 2m and hitting the line strongly. He also stayed 2m4f around a stiff track in Sandown in the aforementioned EBF Final despite racing keenly in the early stages. I think they have kept him at 2m in order to get him handicapped with a lenient mark before stepping him up in trip. Therefore, it really is quite remarkable to see everything he has achieved over the minimum trip. However, I think he’s about to achieve a lot more as they step him up in distance; hopefully starting today!
All season Meetmebythesea has been campaigned on testing ground but he’ll be much happier on a sounder surface
What I also find interesting is that Meetmebythesea started his career under rules with three wins over hurdles on Good to Soft ground. He then ran a huge race in the EBF Final which was also on Good to Soft ground. He has then had his three starts over fences to date on Soft, Heavy and Heavy ground. Whilst he won the first two and the latter was in the Game Spirit, which would be a big ask at any time, I think he would be much happier on better ground.
Interestingly, after his win at Ayr, Ben Pauling commented that:
“It was a good performance considering the ground didn’t look ideal for Meetmebythesea.”. He later went on to say:
“He’s surely destined for something in the spring, but I don’t know where they (you would assume JP McManus and Frank Berry) want to go with him yet.”. I think they have now decided on his spring target and it is this Jack Richards Novices' Limited Handicap Chase.
I think Meetmebythesea has been campaigned with a big handicap in mind and now he comes here for one on his chase handicap debut. He now gets the step up in trip and returns to better ground. I’m not sure where his ceiling is but I would bet good money that it is far higher than 139 and I think he has enough in handicap to win a Cheltenham Festival handicap. I’d argue that you need around 10lb in hand to be winning one of these very competitive handicaps and I could easily see him being a 149+ horse over fences with conditions to suit. Caldwell Potter won this last year for the Paul Nicholls stable before winning the Grade 1 Mildmay Novices’ Chase at Aintree. Whether they went up in trip again for the Mildmay or the Manifesto over 2m3f, I could certainly see them following a similar path if all goes to plan.
Can Meetmebythesea give JP McManus another Cheltenham Festival win?
At the time of writing, JP McManus has already enjoyed Cheltenham Festival wins with Saratoga and Johnnywho on the opening day. After going 0/9 on Day 2, he’ll be looking to bounce back and if he doesn’t in the Mares’ Novice’ Hurdle, I think Meetmebythesea can do the business for him here.
As always, it’s a case of weighing up the positives, the negatives and the odds. For me, the positives are here in abundance as explained in the article above. I’m struggling to find much in the way of negatives other than the fact that his trainer - Ben Pauling, is 0/7 across the opening two days of the Festival and his jockey - Ben Jones, is 0/9. That said, they haven’t unleashed a JP McManus good thing until now…
In terms of the odds, Meetmebythesea was plunged into prices as short as 9/2, if not shorter. At that point, I could see the bet disappearing as his odds diminished. However, after Ben Pauling and Ben Jones have failed to get on the scoreboard in the opening two days and JP McManus had a winless Day 2, Meetmebythesea has drifted out to 13/2, which is much more than appealing to me. I’m making my move now at 13/2 and if he drifts further, so be it. However, I would not be surprised at all to see another wave of money come for him, especially near the race time!
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