--- title: "Cheltenham Festival Prize Money 2026: ALL 28 Races Ranked From Most Lucrative To Least Valuable" canonical: "https://readhorseracing.com/2026/03/10/cheltenham-festival-prize-money-2026/" type: "post" language: "en-GB" author: "Andy Newton" section: "News" published: "2026-03-10T14:06:32Z" modified: "2026-03-25T11:14:20Z" --- # Cheltenham Festival Prize Money 2026: ALL 28 Races Ranked From Most Lucrative To Least Valuable **With the biggest four days of the jumps season fast approaching, we’ve taken a deep dive into the 2026 Cheltenham Festival prize money.** Below, you’ll find every race ranked by winners’ purse, a full breakdown of what’s on offer across the week, and a clear look at which contests carry the most financial clout. With just over £2.7 million paid out to the winners over the four-day 2026 Cheltenham Festival. ## **Cheltenham Festival Winner Prize Money 2026 – Ranked By Race 💷** All 28 races are listed below in order of the prize money paid to the winner. Sitting miles clear at the top is the Cheltenham Gold Cup, with a hefty £351,688 heading to the victor. Should the current market leader with the UK betting sites, **JANGO BAIE,** land his first Gold Cup – his career earnings would climb to £665,812. To put that into context, the Gold Cup winner collects £98,473 more than the Champion Hurdle hero, who will bank £253,215. Oh, and a huge £327,243 more than the Festival Challenge Cup Open Hunters’ Chase winner (£24,445), which follows the Gold Cup on the Friday card. Across the entire meeting, total prize money stands at staggering **£4,930,000**, with £2,772,650 of that going directly to winners. While over the four day meeting, you can [watch the Cheltenham Festival](https://readhorseracing.com/2026/03/02/where-to-watch-the-2026-cheltenham-festival-itv-racing-schedule/) on the ITV schedule – with the first six races shown each day. ### **2026 Cheltenham Festival Prize Money For ALL 28 Races** | **Rank** | **Cheltenham Festival Race** | **Class** | **Total Prize Money** | **Winner** | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | Cheltenham Gold Cup | Grade 1 | £625,000 | £351,688 | | 2 | Champion Hurdle | Grade 1 | £450,000 | £253,215 | | 3 | Queen Mother Champion Chase | Grade 1 | £400,000 | £225,080 | | 4 | Ryanair Chase (Registered as the Festival Trophy) | Grade 1 | £375,000 | £211,013 | | 5 | Paddy Power Stayers’ Hurdle | Grade 1 | £325,000 | £182,878 | | 6- | Arkle Challenge Trophy Novices’ Chase | Grade 1 | £200,000 | £112,540 | | 6- | Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase (Registered as the Broadway) | Grade 1 | £200,000 | £112,540 | | 7- | Supreme Novices’ Hurdle | Grade 1 | £150,000 | £84,405 | | 7- | Ultima Handicap Chase | Premier Handicap | £150,000 | £84,405 | | 7- | Turners Novices’ Hurdle (Registered as the Baring Bingham) | Grade 1 | £150,000 | £84,405 | | 7- | Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Chase | Premier Handicap | £150,000 | £84,405 | | 7- | Sun Racing Plate Handicap Chase | Premier Handicap | £150,000 | £84,405 | | 7- | JCB Triumph Hurdle | Grade 1 | £150,000 | £84,405 | | 7- | Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle (Registered as the Spa) | Grade 1 | £150,000 | £84,405 | | 8 | Mrs Paddy Power Mares’ Chase (Registered as the Liberthine) | Grade 2 | £120,000 | £73,151 | | 9 | Close Brothers Mares’ Hurdle | Grade 1 | £120,000 | £70 338 | | 10 | Jack Richards Novices’ Limited Handicap Chase | Grade 2 | £125,000 | £64,300 | | 11- | County Hurdle | Premier Handicap | £100,000 | £61,897 | | 11- | Pertemps Network Final Handicap Hurdle | Premier Handicap | £100,000 | £61,897 | | 11- | BetMGM Cup Handicap Hurdle (Coral) | Premier Handicap | £100,000 | £61,897 | | 12 | Ryanair Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle (Registered as the Dawn Run) | Grade 2 | £105,000 | £59,084 | | 13 | National Hunt Chase (Novices’ Handicap) | Class 2 | £100,000 | £51,440 | | 14 | Weatherbys Champion Bumper | Grade 1 | £80,000 | £45,560 | | 15 | Fred Winter Juvenile Handicap Hurdle | Premier Handicap | £80,000 | £45,016 | | 16- | Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase (A Limited Handicap) | Class 2 | £75,000 | £39,023 | | 16- | Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle | Class 2 | £75,000 | £38,580 | | 17 | Fulke Walwyn Kim Muir Challenge Cup Handicap Chase (Amateur Riders) | Class 2 | £75,000 | £36,233 | | 18 | Festival Challenge Cup Open Hunters’ Chase | Class 2 | 50,000 | £24,445 | | **TOTALS** | | | **£4,930,000** | **£2,772,650** | ### **Cheltenham Festival Prize Money** **Day One – Tuesday 10th March 2026** **💰Total prize money: £1,250,000** The 2026 Cheltenham Festival gets underway with £1.25 million up for grabs on the opening afternoon. Unsurprisingly, the Champion Hurdle headlines Tuesday’s action, which can be seen live on the [ITV Racing schedule](https://readhorseracing.com/2026/02/26/itv-racing-schedule-today-weekly-saturday/). With £450,000 in the pot and £253,215 going to the winner, it’s comfortably the day’s standout. A prize Golden Ace landed in 2025 (watch below). Next on the list is the Arkle Challenge Trophy Novices’ Chase, which offers £112,540 to the winner. While on day one, the first race – the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle is worth £84,405 and one of the [best Willie Mullins Cheltenham Festival races](https://readhorseracing.com/2026/02/27/best-willie-mullins-cheltenham-festival-races/). By the end of Tuesday, £715,426 will have been paid out in winners’ prize money alone. [Unibet Champion Hurdle Challenge Trophy | Cheltenham 2025 (embedded)](https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/sotTidSOM6w?feature=oembed) ### **Cheltenham Festival Prize Money Day Two – Wednesday 11th March 2026** **💰Total prize money: £1,155,000** There’s a slight dip in the overall pot on Wednesday, but it still comfortably clears the £1.1 million mark. The feature is the Queen Mother Champion Chase, with £225,080 going to the winner from a £400,000 total purse. It’s the most valuable race of the day and one of the championship highlights of the entire week – won last year my Marine Nationale (watch below), who is back for more in 2026. The Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase is next best, handing £112,540 to winning connections. At the other end of the scale, the Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase offers £39,023 to the winner – the smallest payout on Wednesday’s card. Which is also one of the [Cheltenham Festival races Willie Mullins is yet to win](https://readhorseracing.com/2026/02/27/best-willie-mullins-cheltenham-festival-races/). While the newly sponsored [BetMGM Cup](https://readhorseracing.com/2026/02/27/betmgm-new-coral-cup-sponsor-2026-cheltenham-festival/) – the old Coral Cup – will carry £61,897 to the first past the post. Total winner payouts for the day come to £652,910. [BetMGM Queen Mother Champion Chase | Cheltenham 2025 (embedded)](https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/ap9JvzNaVY8?feature=oembed) ### **Cheltenham Festival Prize Money** **Day Three – Thursday 12th March 2026** **💰Total prize money: £1,255,000** Thursday edges back up again, largely thanks to two championship races sharing the spotlight. The Ryanair Chase, which was won by Fact To File in 2025, leads the way with £211,013 heading to the winner. Putting this race narrowly ahead of the Paddy Power Stayers’ Hurdle, where connections will pocket £182,878. The Fulke Walwyn Kim Muir Challenge Cup Handicap Chase is Thursday’s lowest-paying race, with £36,233 awarded to the winner. Across the afternoon, £685,743 will be paid out to winning owners. [Ryanair Chase | Cheltenham 2025 (embedded)](https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/p9H9Pq42T3c?feature=oembed) ### **Cheltenham Festival Prize Money** **Day Four – Friday 13th March 2026** **💰Total prize money: £1,270,000** Gold Cup Day is the richest of the four – and rightly so. The Cheltenham Gold Cup is the Festival’s showpiece and carries the biggest reward of the week. Victory brings £351,688, and if two-time winner Galopin Des Champs completes a hat-trick, owner Mrs Audrey Turley will be collecting another sizeable cheque. Behind the main event, both the JCB Triumph Hurdle and the Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle are worth £84,405 to the winner. The smallest payout of the entire Festival also comes on Friday. With the Festival Challenge Cup Open Hunters’ Chase winner getting £24,445 – modest by championship standards, but still a Cheltenham Festival victory all the same. Total winner payouts on Gold Cup Day reach £718,571, making it the most lucrative afternoon of the week. ## **Cheltenham Festival Prize Money 2026 – By Day** - **Tuesday 10th March: £1,250,000 total | £715,426 to winners** - **Wednesday 11th March: £1,155,000 total | £652,910 to winners** - **Thursday 12th March: £1,255,000 total | £685,743 to winners** - **Friday 13th March: £1,270,000 total | £718,571 to winners** #### **Across all four days:** - £4,930,000 in total prize money - £2,772,650 paid to winners ## **The Most Valuable Race at the 2026 Cheltenham Festival** There’s no surprise here. With £351,688 going to the winner, the Cheltenham Gold Cup stands comfortably clear as the most valuable race of the meeting. #### **The Five Championship Races – Ranked by Winner’s Prize** - **Cheltenham Gold Cup: £351,688** - **Champion Hurdle: £253,215** - **Queen Mother Champion Chase: £225,080** - **Ryanair Chase: £211,013** - **Paddy Power Stayers’ Hurdle: £182,878** Combined, these five races account for £2,175,000 in total prize money, with £1,223,874 going to the winners alone. ## **The Least Valuable Race at the 2026 Cheltenham Festival** At £24,445 to the winner, the Festival Challenge Cup Open Hunters’ Chase carries the smallest purse of the week – though for connections, the prestige of a Festival win is priceless. A race the Sam Curling-trained Wonderwall won in 2025 and he’s back this year as one of the [2026 Cheltenham Festival favourites](https://readhorseracing.com/2026/02/26/cheltenham-festival-favourites-2026/) for the amateur jockeys’ race. [St. James's Place Festival Challenge Cup | Cheltenham 2025 (embedded)](https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/SOmeucbD-J0?feature=oembed)