P R EV I EW
Festival Flashback
Cheltenham Festival Preview
Sea Pigeon The Centenary running of the Champion Hurdle is set to take place next year and one of the legendary figures ready to star in the show is the American- bred Sea Pigeon, who won the famous race in 1980 and 1981. There have been many multiple winners of the Champion Hurdle, however none were as old or experienced as Sea Pigeon, who achieved his two famous Cheltenham successes at the ripe old ages of ten and eleven. His first came under Jonjo O’Neil but when he defended his title a year later, John Francome was jocked up to take the ride, as Jonjo had a broken leg. Sea Pigeon was a dual-purpose star winning the Ebor Handicap under the huge weight of 10 stone. He also landed the Chester Cup on two occasions. He made his racecourse debut in 1972 and won thirty-seven of his eighty-five races. He was owned by Scottish businessman Pat Muldoon and trained initially by Gordon Richards and then by Peter Easterby. Best Read From Bicycle To Bentley by Stephen Little
BROUGHT TO YOU BY WILLIAM HILL
Get your spot for the Festival Preview event of the season, when a stellar panel of industry greats discuss the upcoming races. Hear what those in the know have to say as they go through the card discussing who they like, who they don’t – and why!
The Panel:
Sir AP McCoy – legendary jockey and 20 times Champion Jockey Barry Geraghty – big race hero and second most Festival winning jockey of all time Jane Mangan – former Festival jockey and now a Racing Broadcaster Leonna Mayor – former jockey and Racing Presenter An appearance from 2025 Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup winning trainer Gavin Cromwell . Date: Thursday 5th March 2026 Time: 6.30pm Bars open 6pm Where: The Centaur, Cheltenham Racecourse Tickets available via the website
From humble pedals to high-stakes payouts, "From Bicycle to Bentley" tracks the legendary rise of Stephen Little. A math prodigy who once interviewed at Cambridge simply because it was on the route to Newmarket, Little spent his youth cycling to every racecourse in the UK. His
journey from a 24-year-old rookie with his first licence in 1971 to the "King of the Rails" by 1986 is a masterclass in risk. At the peak of his career, Little was laying bets to lose £100,000, staggering sum by today's standards. By the time he exited the betting ring in 1998, he had traded his youth hostel stays for a Georgian home in Bath and a Bentley. Available on Amazon or Marlborough Books. TEL: 01934 613996.
FREE TO MEMBERS – get your tickets at www.thejockeyclub.co.uk/ cheltenham
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