Punchestown Festival Betting Guide 2023: Odds, Tips & Predictions

The 2023 Punchestown Festival will take place between Tuesday, April 25th and Saturday, April 29th this year, during which time 40 races and a whopping 12 Grade 1 contests will take place. The sheer volume of high-profile races here means that Punchestown Festival is incredibly popular for horse racing betting, both among seasoned punters and casual gamblers who fancy a rare flutter!

In this Punchestown Festival betting guide, I’ll take a look at the best betting sites and latest odds, while appraising the key runners in the most anticipated races!

💯 Punchestown Festival 2023 Betting Odds

With 12 Grade 1 races taking place during the five-day Punchestown Festival, there’s a huge range of betting markets you can target with your hard-earned bankroll. I’ve featured a few of the most popular races below, while publishing the latest Punchestown Festival betting odds for each one!

1️⃣ Champion Chase Day Odds

Day one of the Punchestown Festival will feature the Champions Steeplechase, which will be sponsored by William Hill in 2023. The runners will arrive under starters’ orders on April 25th at 17:25 GMT, while the winner of this Grade 1 race will bank a cool €180,000.

Runner
Energumene	1.36	1.40	1.36	1.40	1.40	1.40
Gentleman De Mee	6.00	6.00	6.00	6.00	5.00	6.00
Captain Guinness	7.50	7.50	7.00	6.00	6.50	7.50
Blue Lord	9.00	10.00	11.00	9.00	10.00	11.00
Magic Daze	26.00	26.00	29.00	21.00	17.00	26.00
Rebel Gold	34.00	34.00	34.00	34.00	41.00	34.00
Chacun Pour Soi	34.00	34.00	26.00	34.00	26.00	34.00

• www.begambleaware.org

2️⃣ Punchestown Gold Cup Odds

The Ladbrokes Gold Cup is another stellar Grade 1 race, and one will dominate Punchestown Festival 2023 betting on day two (Wednesday, 26th April). At the time of writing, 13 runners have been entered by their trainers, each of which will also compete for a winners’ cheque of €180,000!

Runner
Galopin Des Champs	1.28	1.25	1.28	1.25	1.25	1.28
Bravemansgame	5.00	5.50	5.50	5.00	5.00	5.00
Envoi Allen	7.50	7.00	8.50	7.00	7.00	8.00
Fury Road	17.00	17.00	21.00	21.00	15.00	15.00
Hewick	17.00	13.00	15.00	8.00	15.00	19.00
Fastorslow	34.00	34.00	34.00	26.00	34.00	26.00

• www.begambleaware.org

3️⃣ Punchestown Champion Stayers Hurdle Odds

The Ladbrokes Champions Stayers Hurdle is scheduled to start at 17:25 GMT on Thursday, 27th April, with this Grade 1 outing anchoring the Punchestown Festival nicely. Open to runners aged four and older, the 2023 iteration will see 17 horses compete for a winners’ cheque of €180,000.

Runner
Teahupoo	3.25	3.25	3.25	2.75	3.25	3.25
Monkfish	6.00	6.00	4.50	7.00	5.00	6.00
Sire Du Berlais	6.50	6.50	5.00	6.00	6.50	6.00
Klassical Dream	4.50	5.00	6.50	5.00	4.50	5.00
Asterion Forlonge	9.00	9.00	7.50	11.00	8.00	10.00
Queens Brook	11.00	11.00	10.00	11.00	9.00	11.00
Summerville Boy	15.00	15.00	11.00	17.00	17.00	15.00
Champ	15.00	13.00	13.00	13.00	15.00	13.00
Ashdale Bob	11.00	11.00	17.00	11.00	15.00	13.00
Beacon Edge	26.00	26.00	21.00	26.00	26.00	26.00
Salvador Ziggy	34.00	34.00	21.00	34.00	26.00	34.00
Meet And Greet	21.00	21.00	26.00	17.00	21.00	21.00
Whatdeawant	26.00	26.00	34.00	26.00	21.00	26.00

• www.begambleaware.org

4️⃣ Punchestown Champion Hurdle Odds

Friday 28th April (the penultimate day of the Punchestown Festival) is Ladies Day, which is always sold out and packed full of fun and colour! It also hosts the Grade 1 Paddy Power Champion Hurdle, which starts at 17:25 and will see nine confirmed runners compete for a top prize of €180,000!

Runner
State Man	1.50	TBC	1.50	1.50	1.50	1.66
Vauban	5.00	TBC	5.00	6.00	5.00	4.50
Pied Piper	8.00	TBC	7.50	8.00	7.00	7.00
Sharjah	9.00	TBC	8.50	8.00	8.00	9.00
Echoes in Rain	9.00	TBC	13.00	9.00	9.00	11.00
Zanahiyr	11.00	TBC	10.00	9.00	12.00	11.00
Epatante	17.00	TBC	TBC	17.00	17.00	15.00
Ballyadam	21.00	TBC	15.00	26.00	15.00	17.00
Colonel Mustard	21.00	TBC	26.00	34.00	34.00	26.00

• www.begambleaware.org

5️⃣ Ballymore Festival Day Odds

This stellar event closes with ‘Ballymore Festival Day’, which is best known for offering exceptional family entertainment that’s inviting for kids of all ages. As for the on-track action, the Grade 1 Ballymore Champion Four-Year-Old Hurdle is the standout race, although neither the runners nor their ante post odds have been confirmed at the time of writing. Once they are, I’ll be sure to update this page with the relevant information.

🔮 Predictions for the Punchestown Festival 2023

You’ll find my detailed Punchestown Festival betting predictions for the William Hill Champion Steeplechase, Ladbrokes Gold Cup and Ladbrokes Champion Stayers Hurdle on separate pages and linked directly from this site. Another stellar Punchestown race is the coveted Paddy Power Champion Hurdle, which is Grade 1 outing featuring nine talented runners. The standout favourite here is the precocious six-year-old chestnut gelding State Man, who belongs to the exceptional Willie Mullins stable and can be backed to win at the odds-on price of 4/6.

There’s good reason for such odds too; with State Man having won six of his nine career hurdle outings alongside two impressive second place finishes. While he finished second and nine lengths behind the brilliant Constitution Hill in the Grade 1 Unibet Champion Hurdle Challenge Trophy at the Cheltenham Festival last month, for example, he ran fluidly and superbly throughout, while this ended a six-race winning streak dating back to February 2022.

Ultimately, he’s proven over two miles or more and has only lost once to a truly generational talent in the last 14 months, and while his odds may not offer exceptional value, I’m tipping State Man to hold off Vauban and Pied Piper and win the Paddy Power Champion Hurdle at Punchestown.

🏆 Top Punchestown Festival 2023 Betting Sites

When it comes to big racing events such as Punchestown, you will find that most sports betting sites will offer markets and odds for it because they are fully aware as to just how much money can be made from the big festivals. However, it is safe to say that not all bookmakers have been created equally, and below we are going to take a closer look at five of what we believe to be the best sites for betting on the Punchestown festival.

✅ BoyleSports

While the Irish betting market is one of the most competitive and heavily populated in Europe, there’s no doubt that BoyleSport is a dominant betting brand and one that’s synonymous with sports betting in Ireland.

This is certainly the best site for ante post Punchestown betting, as it’s one of the few sites to have published its odds for the most popular Grade 1 races at the time of writing. It also regularly runs ‘Best Odds Guarantee’ promotions ahead of festivals of this type, which ensures that you can bet on outcomes at the best possible real-time prices.

New Irish customers can also receive up to €40 in free bets, when they place a qualifying bet of €10 at minimum odds of 2.00. Your free bets will comprise €30 in sports wagers and €10 online casino funds, while wagering requirements of 5x are applied to the total value of your bonus funds.

Read our BoyleSports review to discover what more this bookmaker has to offer.

✅ Betway

You’ll also find thousands of betting markets in play at Betway, with counts horse racing as one of 36 sports accessible through the site. These include an enhanced number of in-play markets and micro betting options, enabling you to bet on the Punchestown Festival and place innovative wagers as the races unfold.

Betway also combines thousands of in-play betting markets with an extensive live streaming platform, so you can actively watch races from Punchestown and place real-time bets through a single, interactive interface.

You’ll also find some of the best Punchestown Festival betting offers at Betway, including the operator’s welcome bonus. This will reward you with up to €30 in free bets when you make an initial qualifying wager of €10, with the offer valid for seven days once you’ve credited your new account. Although no wagering requirements will be in play, all qualifying wagers must placed on outcomes with minimum odds of 1.75.

Check our Betway review to discover more attractive offers and features.

✅ William Hill

No list of this type would be complete without a reference to William Hill Sports, which offers an exceptional range of features and promotions to customers. It’s also an online and high street behemoth in the same mould as BoyleSports, so it’s definitely a brand that you can trust with your bankroll.

Ahead of the Punchestown Festival, William Hill will offer a ‘Top Price Guarantee’ on the biggest races, with this available up until the last minute. This ensures that you get the best possible value for money when placing your bet, while William Hill will also offer one bet boost every day when wagering a minimum of €20 on horse or greyhound races.

As for the site’s welcome offer, this will reward you with up to €30 in free bets when you make an initial deposit and qualifying bet of at least €10. All qualifying wagers must be placed at odds of 1.50 or greater, while you’ll have 30 days to claim your free bets once you’ve committed your original stake.

For more details and promotions go read our William Hill review.

✅ Ladbrokes

When it comes to identifying the best betting deals for the Punchestown Festival, you should look further than another iconic Ireland UK betting brand in the form of Ladbrokes. Alongside football, horse racing is one of Ladbrokes most widely covered sports, and one that’s the subject of regular promotions and bonus offers.

For example, you can apply a single odds boost to a horse racing bet of your choice every day with Ladbrokes, and this may come in handy ahead of the Punchestown Festival. In total, there are three different daily odds and price boost promotions available through the site, and you can leverage these to access enhanced odds when betting online.

The current Ladbrokes welcome offer also rewards you with up to €20 in free bets, so long as you’re a new customers who makes an initial, qualifying wager of €5 within 14 days of registering. The qualifying bet must be placed on odds of 1.50 or higher, while all free bets are valid for seven days once they’ve been added to your account.

Read our Ladbrokes review for more information about this bookie and its services.

✅ Unibet

If you’re a committed in-play bettor and looking for the best sportsbook ahead of the Punchestown Festival, Unibet comes highly recommended. Like Betway, it features an extensive and comprehensive live streaming platform, while offering an even larger selection of in-play and micro betting markets.

The live betting experience at Unibet is improved further by the site’s generous cash out feature, which allows you to close out your wagers noticeably early on and potentially recoup a higher percentage of your original stake. This is ideal when wagering on the Grade 1 races at Punchestown, which are difficult to predict and feature high-quality fields.

As for Unibet’s welcome offer, you can earn up to €40 in free bets when you sign up and make a qualifying wager of €10. You can also deploy these free bets across a range of in-play markets, so long your qualifying wager is placed at minimum odds of 1.40.

We have reviewed Unibet where further information is given about this bookmaker.

✅ Mr Green

Mr Green offers a total of 32 sports betting categories to its punters, including horse and greyhound racing, while it’s also renowned for delivering some of the most competitive odds to punters in the Irish marketplace.

You can also access a wide range of betting markets through Mr Green, including complex forecast and tricast wagers (alongside traditional outright and each-way bets). This makes for a seamless and enjoyable online gambling experience, while the site’s outstanding level of customer support and its highly evolved self-exclusion service is second to none in Ireland.

As for the welcome bonus, Mr Green is offering free bets worth up to €50 for new customers who credit their account with a minimum of €20. You must then place a qualifying wager of at least €20 at odds of 1.80 or higher, with the free bets added to your account once this has been confirmed. It’s certainly a generous bonus, and one that offers access to multiple Punchestown betting markets.

You can check our Mr Green review for more deals.

🏁 Punchestown Festival Schedule

The action-packed Punchestown Festival will feature a staggering 40 races across just five days, including 12 stellar Grade 1 events. While this is great news for punters, it also creates a hectic betting schedule, so it’s important to identify the key races and manage your bankroll accordingly. Here’s a comprehensive list of each day’s schedule and their individual races!

📌 Day 1 -Champion Chase Day

Day one of the festival features a total of eight races, including the William Hill Champions Steeplechase. This became a Grade 1 National Hunt race in 2000, with notable winners including Sizing Europe, Moscow Flyer and Master Minded. This race is due to start at 17:25, with other races scheduled either side of it on day one.

📌 Day 2 – Gold Cup Day

Day two is known colloquially as ‘Gold Cup’ day, as it features the Grade 1 Punchestown Gold Cup (which will be sponsored by Ladbrokes in 2023). This National Hunt Steeplechase covers three miles and ½ furlong, while it’s home to 17 challenging fences that runners must navigate. The Ladbrokes Gold Cup is one of eight further races on day two.

📌 Day 3 – Champion Stayers Hurdle Day

Day three is dominated by the Grade 1 Champion Stayers Hurdle, which is a National Hunt outing that’s run over three miles. There are 14 hurdles to be jumped here, while the race is open to horses who are aged four or older. Interestingly, Klassical Dream will go in search of a third consecutive Champion Stayers Hurdle crown in 2023, as he looks to become the first runner to this feat since Quevega in 2012.

📌 Day 4 – Champion Hurdle & Ladies Day

Another eight races are scheduled for Friday 28th April, which is Ladies Day at the Punchestown Festival! The big race to look out for here is the Champion Hurdle, which is ran over two miles and also open to runners who are aged four and older. Check out the schedule for Ladies Day below, and if you are attending, remember to put on your Sunday best!

📌 Day 5 – Ballymore Festival Day

The Punchestown Festival comes to an end with the raucous Ballymore Festival, which is a day packed full of fun and entertainment for families! It’s also home to the Grade 1 Ballymore Champion Four-Year-Old Hurdle, which is a stellar race that’s run over two miles or so. Here’s the full card for Punchestown’s final day in 2023.

• www.begambleaware.org

✔️ Punchestown Festival 2023 Betting Tips

Betting on the Punchestown Festival and its various races can be challenging, both the from perspective of predicting specific race outcomes and managing your bankroll. So, I’ve prepared a few Punchestown Festival betting tips to help you minimise the risk of loss while simultaneously optimising your returns!

⭐ Make the Most of Each-Way Betting

Whenever you’re betting on Grade 1 races such as the Ladbrokes Gold Cup, you’ll notice that a number of successful and high-quality runners are listed to compete.

This can make it difficult to predict an outright winner, so in this instance, moneyline betting comes with considerable risk and variable rates of return depending on the live odds in play.

This is where each-way betting comes into play. This effectively enables you to split your starting stake between two different outcomes, with half backing your chosen runner to win the race and the remainder betting on them to place in the top four or five. While you’ll bank slightly less if your horse wins in this instance, you’ll also create a form of insurance and recoup at least some of your stake if they place well.

This is an excellent way of minimising losses and recouping as much of your bankroll as possible, especially when wagering on competitive Grade 1 races.

⭐ Create a Fixed and Realistic Bankroll

There are several keys to successful sports betting and bankroll management, but which of these is the most important?

To begin with, I’d argue that your total bankroll should never exceed an amount that you can afford to lose within a predetermined timeframe, whether this is a week, month or the duration of specific festivals like Punchestown.

To help manage your bankroll, I’d also recommend using the deposit limits put in place by specific sportsbooks. You can set daily, weekly and monthly deposit limits depending on how frequently you wager, making bankroll management much easier and creating an additional layer of insurance.

This way, you can wager freely and with genuine peace of mind at the Punchestown Festival, while giving priority to the highest value wagers and betting markets.

⭐ Leverage Free Bet Offers to Your Advantage

Leveraging free bets and deposit match offers is another excellent way of managing your bankroll, as this creates additional capital with which to wager.

Often, these bonuses match the amount of your initial deposit or qualifying wager up to a predetermined value, enabling you to pursue additional returns and potentially engage in matched betting (which cancels out the risk on your back bet by laying against the same outcome at identical odds).

As I’ve already touched on, the market leading sportsbooks also run an array of additional promotions ahead of major horse racing betting festivals. These include the type of daily price boosts offered by William Hill, which automatically enhance the available odds and help you to increase the size of your potential returns.

By making use of these free bet offers and alternative promotions, you can increase the size of your real-time bankroll and alter the risk/reward proposition associated with specific wagers.

🎁 Top Betting Offers for the Punchestown Festival 2023

To ensure that you use the available free bets and Punchestown races betting offers to your advantage, you’ll have to identify the best real-time promotions and compare the market in detail. Here’s a breakdown from the top betting offers from Betinireland’s recommended sportsbooks.

Betting Site	Offer	Claim
	Get €20 in free bets when you wager €5	Visit Ladbrokes
	Get up to €30 in free bets	Visit Betway
	Get two €10 free bets and 100 Extra Spins	Visit Mr Green
	Bet €10 and earn €40 in free bets
	Bet €10 and get €40 in Free Bets	Visit BoyleSports
	Bet €10 and earn €40 in Free Bets	Visit William Hill

N.B. Please remember that sportsbooks are constantly changing their bonuses, so there is the possibility that when/if you go to register with one of the bookmakers that we mentioned above that the offer we mentioned is no longer on offer. If this happens to be the case, we do apologise for any inconvenience that it causes. We always try our best to keep everything up to date, but things move really fast in the sports betting industry, and things are easily missed.

• www.begambleaware.org

🥇 Punchestown Festival 2022 Winners

The Punchestown Festival 2022 provided a slew of well-known winners, some of whom will also be competing this time around. Below, you can see highlights from all the action on April 28th last year, which featured the Grade 1 Champion Stayers Hurdle. Klassical Dream starred here, winning the race for the second successive year and ultimately prevailing by 1¼ lengths from Ashdale Bob.

🏁 Punchestown Festival History

The Punchestown Festival is one of the major horse racing events of the National Hunt season, while it’s arguably the biggest on the Emerald Isle. It started out life as the “Kildare and National Hunt Steeplechase” in 1861, and by the mid-1860s, attendances had swelled to some 40,000 as more challenging fences and hurdles were introduced.

The presence of the-then Prince of Wales, Albert Edward, in 1868 further bolstered crowds by 5,000 or more, as fans flocked in their droves from Dublin to watch the action in-person. In 1875, the Punchestown Racecourse in Eadestown, County Kildare officially opened its doors, and this has played host to the five-day festival and its 40 races ever since.

This festival has showcased some of the best runners and stables in horse racing history, with trainer Willie Mullins boasting the best statistical recent record at Punchestown. In five years prior to the 2023 iteration, he has entered 720 runners across historic Punchestown Festivals, recording 164 wins at an impressive rate of 23%. His horses have also earned 341 placed finishes, which means that a staggering 47% of his total runners have finished in the top four over the years.

In terms of jockeys, Paul Townsend is the most successful at Punchestown during the same period, with 67 wins from 234 runs at a win percentage of 29% (this is 11% higher than Davy Russell). Townsend enjoyed a particularly successful Punchestown Festival in 2022, when he rode the Mullins-trained Allaho and Klassical Dream to success in the Gold Cup and Champion Stayers Hurdle respectively.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions About Punchestown Festival 2023 Betting

There are few horse racing meetings that are as action-packed as the Punchestown Festival, and it’s only natural that you should have a few remaining questions or queries about the 2023 iteration. So, here are some answers to some of your most frequently asked questions about Punchestown and this betting guide!

✒️ Lewis Humphries iGaming and Sports Betting Expert

Lewis Humphries is an experienced sportswriter and tipster from the UK. He writes regularly about the horse racing and key events from across the UK and Ireland, including the Irish Grand National, the Cheltenham Gold Cup and the Aintree Grand National. He’s also providing extensive coverage and predictions for the 2023 Easter Festival at Fairyhouse.