Date: Thursday 12th March 2026
The Ryanair Chase continues to follow a very strong and consistent profile, with Irish-trained runners dominating and the ideal winner typically aged between 7 and 9 with proven Grade 1 class over intermediate trips.
This year’s race had a slightly unusual shape after the late withdrawal of favourite Fact To File, which reshaped the market and brought several British contenders firmly into play.
Even with that disruption, the key trends still held strong — class, Cheltenham experience and proven form at around 2m4f remained absolutely vital.
These are the three that came out best on the Turf Talk figures.
| Horse | Turf Talk Rating |
|---|---|
| Heart Wood | 222 |
| Jonbon | 219 |
| Banbridge | 212 |
| JPR One | 198 |
| Impaire Et Passe | 190 |
| Matata | 176 |
| Master Chewy | 165 |
The ratings again favour horses with proven class at the trip, previous Cheltenham experience and a strong recent run coming into the Festival.
MAIN SELECTION
Heart Wood (9/2 available)
He comes out top on the ratings and fits the strongest trends perfectly.
An improving 8-year-old from the Henry de Bromhead yard, he had already shown he belonged at this level and arrived here with the ideal profile for a Ryanair winner. With the favourite out, he stepped forward and delivered a dominant performance.
BACKUP SELECTION 1
Jonbon (2/1 available)
The most solid alternative and the one who effectively became the market leader on the day.
He brought top-class form into the race and had the tactical speed for this trip, but questions remained about whether this intermediate distance fully played to his strengths.
BACKUP SELECTION 2
Banbridge (3/1 available)
A strong contender who matched many of the key trends.
He had proven form at the trip and plenty of class, and looked a major player coming into the race. While not quite matching the winner, he still ran a solid race in a competitive field.
SUMMARY
Heart Wood tops the ratings and gets the vote, with Jonbon the biggest danger and Banbridge another solid contender in a race where the intermediate-distance specialists once again came to the fore.
