With the 2025 edition of the Cheltenham Festival kicking off on Tuesday, 11th March, the countdown is now well and truly on ahead of the biggest meeting of the racing year. Much like the rest of the punting world, we can’t wait for it all to begin. However, a few highlights are squeezed into the racing programme before the March jamboree begins in earnest.
This Saturday the focus switches to Sandown as the Esher venue hosts the 2025 edition of the Imperial Cup. First run back in 1907, this 2m Class 2 Handicap offers £100,000 in total prize money. However, the potential riches don’t stop there; if the winner goes on to land any event at the 2025 Cheltenham Festival, connections will find an additional £100,000 bonus heading in their direction.
Only three horses have managed to secure the elusive Cheltenham Festival bonus, but each year, the Imperial Cup field is packed with contenders holding a Cheltenham Festival entry. Things are no different this year, with the 2025 edition shaping up to be a fiendishly competitive affair. Here, we look back at the ten editions of the race between 2014 and 2024 (no race in 2020 due to the uncooperative British weather) and highlight a selection of stats and trends which may help identify the most likely contenders.
Favour Runners with a Recent Run
Race fitness is generally an advantage in any competitive handicap. Such is the case in the Imperial Cup. Looking back at the past ten editions, only one winner arrived following a break of more than 40 days, whilst nine of ten had appeared at the track within the last 35 days.
Focussing on those to have run within the last 35 days reduces the current 28-runner field to 17, with the reasonably well-fancied Wreckless Eric and Bo Zenith the most notable runners to come up short on this stat.
Unexposed in Handicap Hurdle Events
For better or worse, unexposed runners tend to attract more than their fair share of attention in competitive Saturday handicaps. In the case of the Imperial Cup, recent results suggest that we should favour those with fewer previous outings in similar events. Looking back at the ten editions in our sample, eight of the ten winners had four or fewer previous handicap hurdle starts to their name.
Top weight Afadil and defending champion Go Dante are among those to bite the dust at this stage, bringing us down to a field of nine.
Solid Recent Outing a Positive
As seen in our first trend, a relatively recent outing is an advantage. It also helps if that latest effort was a good one. Whilst only one of the past ten winners had scored last time out, eight of ten finished in the top four, with one of those who didn’t unlucky to be brought down in their warm-up effort.
Sticking to those arriving on the back of a top-four effort brings the field down to seven.
Younger Legs Lead the Way
With unexposed runners holding sway, we would expect the age trends to favour the younger runners. And they do. With eight wins in the past ten years, five and six-year-olds boast the best record in this event.
Moon Chime and market leader Lump Sum fall down at this stage as we reach our final five.
Other Factors
Eight of 10 had previously competed at Listed level or above
Eight of 10 had previously won at 2m – 2m1f
The Final Three
Applying all of the above decreases the 28-runner field to the following three intriguing each-way contenders.
Imaginarium - A winner on the flat for Ger Lyons and over hurdles for Lucinda Russell, this son of Make Believe looked clueless on his first start for Olly Murphy but bounced back with a solid success at Huntingdon last time out. He enjoyed the switch to a right-handed track that day but this looks significantly tougher.
Sorceleur - Achieved the unusual feat of winning twice in the space of two days for Paul Nicholls in November. He has hit the frame in all three starts since but the balance of his form suggests he may need the rain to stay away – the ground at Sandown is described as soft at the time of writing.
Tom Doniphon - Fair level of bumper form took this one to the big Grade 2 at the Aintree Grand National Meeting last season. He disappointed in that event but has performed well since being sent over obstacles – 2024/25 form figures reading 32112. Shouldering 12st in tough going over 2m4f proved too tough a task last time, but he's towards the bottom of the weights here, and a strongly run race at 2m on soft ground may suit.
Betting Selections: Tom The One for Hobbs & White
The most recent of Philip Hobbs's three wins in this contest came in 2010. Now training in partnership with Johnson White, we like his chances of going close with the six-year-old Tom Doniphon.
Having performed so well in bumpers, this son of Great Pretender isn’t short of speed, whilst two wins at 2m3f suggest he should be staying on as well as anything on the run to the line. Having only missed the cut due to a fall last time out, the Willie Mullins runner Batman Girac is feared most, but at the prices, Tom Doniphon looks like a solid each-way play.
Recommended Bet - Tom Doniphon each way @ 25/1 with bet365
Paul Harrison
Falling in love with racing at a young age, Paul’s passion for sports and betting took him to Salford University, where he obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Business Economics with Gambling Studies. Having spent ten years in the employment of a leading bookmaker, Paul opted to go it alone and pursue his dream job as a freelance writer.
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