The final day of Chester’s Boodles May Festival, and today we have what many consider the race of the festival in the Chester Cup.

Last year’s winner, Zoffee, and runner-up, Emiyn, lock horns again, but they will have to match, if not better, last season’s performance to go close this time around.

Get the best horse racing odds from the best horse racing betting sites here.

Chester Cup runner by runner betting guide

18 East India Dock (6)

• Age: 4
• Weight: 8st 8lb
• Form: 04314-
• Rating: 89
• Jockey: Harry Davies
• Trainer: James Owen
• Odds: 4/1

This now high-class juvenile hurdler with two Grade 2 wins and a third-place finish in the Grade 1 Triumph Hurdle sets his sights back on the flat in a race that should be right up his street. When last seen on the flat for James Fanshawe, East India Dock finished fourth in a 0-105 handicap at Doncaster under Ryan Moore. But, before that, he was an easy winner off 83 at Goodwood in September.

The step up to over 2m2f is sure to suit him, and given that he has flourished over hurdles, there is every chance he can show that improvement back on the level and make a mark of 89 look lenient with last season’s winning jockey Harry Davies taking the ride. But he will need to buck a growing trend of none of the previous 11 favourites winning the Chester Cup.

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9 Who’s Glen (10)

• Age: 4
• Weight: 8st 12lb
• Form: 4215-2
• Rating: 93
• Jockey: Oisin Murphy
• Trainer: Andrew Balding
• Odds: 5/1

Since his 13-length demolition job over this course on deep ground, it was clear that the Chester Cup would be Who’s Glen’s main target this season. He had a pipe opener for this at Kempton in March, which should leave him spot-on.

The only worry would be the ground conditions. The ground is currently described as good, and this will be the first time that Who’s Glen will encounter ground as fast as this, but being by Gleneagles, he should not have any issues with the quicker surface. Who’s Glen has a massive chance of giving Andrew Balding and Oisin Murphy their second Chester Cup.

Star rating:

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12 Leinster (5)

• Age: 4
• Weight: 8st 10lb
• Form: 8/13-1
• Rating: 91
• Jockey: Ryan Moore
• Trainer: Joseph O’Brien
• Odds: 13/2

With just four starts to his name, Leinster falls into the ‘could be anything’ category. He has won two of his four starts, and in the second of those wins on his seasonal return, he took apart a competitive field from the front at the Curragh.

The handicapper has had his say by putting him up 8lb, but the end to his improvement is nowhere to be seen just yet. Having been drawn in stall 5, Ryan Moore has the ideal draw to push on for the lead or take a position behind the leaders. Given the room for considerable improvement over this trip, Leinster could be the one to side with.

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14 Caballo De Mar (5)

• Age: 4
• Weight: 8st 7lb
• Form: 11-111
• Rating: 88
• Jockey: Callum Shepherd
• Trainer: George Scott
• Odds: 9/1

Having closed out last season with back-to-back wins, Caballo De Mar kicked on from where he left off, winning his three starts this season and impressively on his latest start over 2m last week.

He gets in here with a mandatory 3lb before his 8lb higher mark kicks in, which leaves him well in. You can’t rule out a horse who is in the form that Caballo De Mar is in, and if this doesn’t come too soon, there is no reason why he can’t take this challenge in his stride.

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7 Hot Fuss (3)

• Age: 4
• Weight: 8st 12lb
• Form: 7233-1
• Rating: 93
• Jockey: Pierre-Louis Jamin
• Trainer: Tom Dascombe
• Odds: 10/1

Hot Fuss is another runner who has been plying his trade over hurdles lately and comes here on the back of a fourth-place finish in the Fred Winter Juvenile Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival.

Before that, he showed improved form on the flat when he readily took a 0-88 at Southwell. He has been handed a plum draw here, and with him being tactically versatile, he can gain a handy position and attack in the home straight. He’s a big player.

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3 Divine Comedy (7)

• Age: 7
• Weight: 9st 7lb
• Form: 580-23
• Rating: 101
• Jockey: Kaiya Fraser (3)
• Trainer: Harry Eustace
• Odds: 12/1

Having run a big race to narrowly miss out on running down Al Qareem on his seasonal return, Divine Comedy was faced with making her own running at Ascot in the Group 3 Sagaro Stakes last week. Those tactics didn’t suit the mare, but she kept going well after being headed outside the 2f pole.

We know that she stays further than this, and if this race does not come too soon after her effort at Ascot last week, she will find this set-up much more to her liking. She is a bit high in the weights, but given her experience in big field handicaps, she has every right to be bang there in her current form.

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8 Zoffee (4)

• Age: 9
• Weight: 8st 11lb
• Form: 00940-
• Rating: 91
• Jockey: Joe Leavy (3)
• Trainer: Hugo Palmer
• Odds: 12/1

Zoffee was a game-winner of last season’s running of the Chester Cup off a 1lb lower mark, but since then, he has failed to match those heights. He comes here after not running for 222 days, and at the age of nine, it’s hard to see him finding enough to win back-to-back runnings with a field stacked with improvers. But, he can run into a place.

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10 Spirit Mixer (13)

• Age: 7
• Weight: 8st 10lb
• Form: 8110-5
• Rating: 90
• Jockey: Rob Hornby
• Trainer: Andrew Balding
• Odds: 16/1

This two-time course winner ran in last season’s renewal off a 4lb higher mark, but before the race even got going, Spirit Mixer had very little chance of winning from stall 17.

He has been drawn in stall 13 this year, which is only slightly better than last season, but if he can get a good break and a nice early position, he is weighted to go very close here on the back of a good comeback run. Granted that Spirit Mixer can get the breaks, he is a big each-way player.

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2 Dawn Rising (15)

• Age: 8
• Weight: 9st 9lb
• Form: 3561-6
• Rating: 103
• Jockey: Ray Dawson
• Trainer: Joseph O’Brien
• Odds: 18/1

Dawn Rising has become ever present in staying handicaps on the flat, and even though he looks to be a shade high in the handicap, you can be sure he will be sticking at it when many are crying enough. Last season, he ran against Kyprios twice, finished a close sixth in the Cesarewitch, and then had his day in the sun when taking a Group 3 at the Curragh in November. He may now have the gears for when the pace lifts, but he will be running on strong at the finish. He’s a serious each-way player.

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4 Duke Of Oxford (14)

• Age: 5
• Weight: 9st 2lb
• Form: 311-43
• Rating: 96
• Jockey: Tom Marquand
• Trainer: Michael Bell
• Odds: 18/1

Duke Of Oxford is an all-weather specialist, winning six of his sixteen starts on artificial surfaces. He was drawn in 16 for last season’s renewal and has had little luck with the draw again. He has yet to place, let alone win on turf, and it’s hard to see him rectifying that record from stall 14. He’s hard to fancy.

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11 Emiyn (2)

• Age: 8
• Weight: 8st 10lb
• Form: 2360-6
• Rating: 90
• Jockey: Zak Wheatley (3)
• Trainer: Declan Carroll
• Odds: 18/1

A course and distance winner and last season’s Chester Cup 2nd arrives here off a 2lb lower mark and on the back of an eye-catching sixth on his seasonal return.

Time after time, Emiyn has shown his best form around Chester, and given his record around here and from a favourable draw, he can outrun his odds again in this season’s renewal.

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6 Charging Thunder (16)

• Age: 7
• Weight: 8st 12lb
• Form: 31-125
• Rating: 92
• Jockey: David Probert
• Trainer: James Owen
• Odds: 22/1

Like many new recruits to the James Owen stable, Charging Thunder had instant success for his new stable last season, racking up a hat trick of wins in his first three starts (two hurdles and one flat). He made a winning return from a 105-day break in March and has run two good races since.

He likes to be held up well off the pace, so stall 16 may not be as bad as it seems from Charging Thunder. If he can get the splits at the right time, he is one that can outrun his odds.

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1 Chemistry (12)

• Age: 4
• Weight: 9st 10lb
• Form: /1120-
• Rating: 105
• Jockey: George Wood
• Trainer: Ivan Furtado
• Odds: 28/1

Formerly trained by Aidan O’Brien, Chemistry is having his first run for Ivan Furtado, but it’s hard to gauge how he will fare off top weight for new connections.

He was awarded his Listed win in the steward’s room in August, and he ran well in a premier handicap on Irish Champions weekend. Undoubtedly, he could be the Group horse hiding in a handicap, but how much will he improve for the change of stable? He’s hard to rule out, but also hard to know what to expect.

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17 Liam Swagger (17)

• Age: 4
• Weight: 8st 2lb
• Form: 52-136
• Rating: 83
• Jockey: Saffie Osborne
• Trainer: James Owen
• Odds: 33/1

Liam Swagger is a decent hurdle under the same owner and trainer as favourite East India Dock. Even though he is currently 33/1, that does not reflect his chances. Admittedly, he has been a beaten favourite on his last two starts on the flat, but there was an excuse for his defeat at Newmarket.

His big issue is being drawn out in the car park, aka stall 17, but going on his return to the flat where he has looked one-paced over 1m6f, but this new trip looks sure to bring out more from him. He has a lot to do from his draw, but if he can get a good early position, Liam Swagger has it in him to run a big race for Saffie Osborne.

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15 Morning Air (1)

• Age: 4
• Weight: 8st 3lb
• Form: 1/442-
• Rating: 84
• Jockey: Joe Fanning
• Trainer: Venetia Williams
• Odds: 40/1

Formally trained on the flat in France, Morning Air made a promising start to life in the UK with a good win on hurdles debut for Venetia Williams. That was on deep ground, and since he encountered a quicker surface, he underperformed both times.

The trip is unknown, and given that all his best performances in the UK and France have come with plenty of digging in the ground, Morning Air is overlooked here.

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16 Bashful Boy (9)

• Age: 9
• Weight: 8st 2lb
• Form: 54/59-
• Rating: 82
• Jockey: Aiden Brookes (3)
• Trainer: David Pipe
• Odds: 50/1

Now, a spritely nine-year-old Bashful Boy comes up against some young improving legs here, and it’s hard to see him playing a serious role here. He has it in him to run well for a long way, and he was only beaten seven lengths in the Cesarewitch last year, but it’s hard to see where the necessary improvement will come from.

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9 Vaguely Royal (11)

• Age: 5
• Weight: 8st 10lb
• Form: 5250-3
• Rating: 90
• Jockey: Conor Beasley
• Trainer: Anthony Charlton
• Odds: 66/1

Formerly trained by John Gosden, Vaguely Royal set sights on the Chester Cup for his new connections. He has had a productive time over hurdles for Anthony Charlton, but he has snippets of form from his days on the flat that would give him a small each-way chance.

He has run well of higher marks in the past, so even though he is the outsider of the field, it wouldn’t be a shock if he was the shake-up for a place finish.

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Chester Cup verdict

As expected, this is a deep and difficult renewal of the Chester Cup to try to solve. There are numerous unexposed types who look sure to improve for the step up in trip. East India Dock has a standout chance of winning, but a slight preference is for the Joseph O’Brien-trained LEINSTER.

The amount of improvement this four-time raced gelding looks set to unlock over this trip will see him bang there for his in-form trainer. And Leinster also gets the added bonus of having Ryan Moore on his back. At 8/1, he is a strong each-way selection.

Dawn Rising, Hot Fuss, and Emiyn are each-way alternatives.

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