Tom Segal Cheltenham Festival Tips 2026

Tom Segal Cheltenham Festival Tips 2026 Revealed: Gold Cup, Champion Chase & Big-Price Each-Way Picks

Cheltenham Festival In Full Swing

Tom Segal — better known to racing fans as Pricewise — is the closest thing British racing has to a tipster legend. He's been at the Racing Post since 1996 and took on the famous Pricewise column in 2001, spending the best part of 25 years finding horses the bookmakers have underestimated.

His reputation for striking fear into the big firms is well earned — William Hill's chief executive once told shareholders that profits "could have been a lot better, if it wasn't for Pricewise." That's quite the endorsement.

What makes Segal different from most analysts is his refreshing honesty about how he works. He's a self-confessed "visuals guy" — he trusts his eye for athletic, progressive horses over data models and spreadsheets, and he's never been shy about saying so.

He also famously never speaks to trainers, whom he considers "invariably bad tipsters" given their obvious bias. It's an independent, contrarian approach that has served him — and his followers — very well indeed.

Last night, Racing Post+ Ultimate subscribers got a rare treat: a live Q&A with Segal himself, where he answered more than 30 questions on his Cheltenham Festival fancies, his punting philosophy and the horses he's most keen to take on. Here's what he said — and what the current markets look like.

Tom Segal Cheltenham Festival Tips 2026 His Golden Rule: Ability and Preparation

When subscriber Jonty Lawford asked Segal for the single most important rule he follows when picking a bet, the answer was straightforward: ability and preparation.

He looks for visually impressive horses — athletic movers that do the right things — and backs them when he's satisfied they've been properly prepared for the race in front of them. Simple in theory, harder in practice, and clearly very effective over time.

Haiti Couleurs — Gold Cup (Friday 13 March) — 7/1–8/1

Haiti Couleurs Credit: Patrick McCann (racingpost.com/photos)

This is the one Segal is "most fond of currently" and it's not hard to see why through his lens. Trained by Rebecca Curtis, the nine-year-old has won seven of his last nine starts — including a Cheltenham Festival win in last year's National Hunt Challenge Cup and the Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse.

He then put in a thoroughly convincing seven-length win in the Grade 2 Denman Chase at Newbury on 7 February, beating L'Homme Presse with plenty in hand.

He's not the flashiest horse in the race — he doesn't cruise in on the bridle or wow you with his jumping — but when the tempo lifts, he just keeps galloping.

He's lightly raced, progressive, has two wins from two at Cheltenham, and is being trained specifically for this moment. He's exactly the kind of horse Segal has always gravitated towards.

The Gold Cup market is unusually open this year. Defending champion Inothewayurthinkin is out at 16/1, Galopin Des Champs at 10/1, and neither has shown anything close to their best this season.

Jango Baie and Fact To File share favouritism, while Spillane's Tower (14/1) and Grey Dawning (16/1) are others in the mix. Haiti Couleurs at 7/1–8/1 looks like a fair price for a horse with proven course form and serious momentum behind him.

L'Eau Du Sud — Champion Chase (Wednesday 11 March) — 8/1

Segal's other key fancy is Dan Skelton's course winner in the Champion Chase. L'Eau Du Sud won the Shloer Chase at Cheltenham in November — beating Jonbon — before an underwhelming run in the Tingle Creek at Sandown in December. Crucially, Skelton has freshened him up since and he's been aimed squarely at the Festival, which fits neatly with Segal's preparation criteria.

The market is dominated by Majborough (13/8) after his stunning 19-length win in the Dublin Chase, with Marine Nationale next at 5/2. But that Dublin win came in near-bottomless ground at Leopardstown, and Cheltenham by day two of the Festival is unlikely to be anything like as testing — which should bring the field much closer together.

At 8/1, L'Eau Du Sud represents solid each-way value from a trainer in red-hot form.

Shuttle Diplomacy — Turners Novices' Chase (Wednesday 11 March) — 25/1

When asked about big-price each-way chances, Segal was clear: Shuttle Diplomacy has been "underestimated" in the Turners. At 25/1 he's very much on the fringe of the market, and Segal's confidence in flagging him specifically — rather than hedging across several novices — suggests he's done his homework here. One to keep onside each-way.

Sandor Clegane — Kim Muir (Thursday 12 March) — 40/1

The speculative one of the four. Segal added the caveat "if he runs" when mentioning Sandor Clegane for the Kim Muir — so declarations will be key.

If he does take his place in the amateur riders' handicap chase over 3m2f, he's 40/1 and worth a small each-way interest. The Kim Muir is exactly the kind of race where a well-handicapped improver can cause chaos at a big price.

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Conclusion

Whether you're a seasoned Festival punter or just looking for a steer from someone who genuinely knows what they're doing, Tom Segal Cheltenham Festival Tips 2026 is as good a starting point as you'll find.

Haiti Couleurs in the Gold Cup is the standout selection — a progressive, proven course winner being trained to peak for the biggest race of the week — but L'Eau Du Sud at 8/1 and Shuttle Diplomacy at 25/1 offer real each-way appeal too.

With the market unusually open this year and Segal's eye for an underestimated horse as sharp as ever, these are tips well worth keeping close as the Festival approaches.