The 2026 Cheltenham festival is finally upon us and after months of anticipation, the waiting is almost over. For casual fans reading this, this year's festival looks incredibly competitive and with the added complication of horses running on soft ground all winter and now facing decent ground, caution is advised. That is certainly the way I'll be approaching the opening day, although admittedly a good ante-post book will help too. The opening contest is a prime example of the competitiveness on show in this year's festival. This promises to be one of the races of the week, with many bubbles burst. I've been firmly in the Old Park Star camp since his impressive win at Cheltenham in December (advised at 14/1 on Attheraces) and while there is plenty of potential in this field, I feel he sets a very high standard. His time was good at Cheltenham even if he didn't beat much and he was better again at Haydock, when he quickened off a strong pace. That bodes well for this...