The RSA Steeple Chase takes place on Ladies Day, as we continue our beginners guide to the 2012 Cheltenham Festival and take a look at this superb Group 1 race.

The Cheltenham Festival is a highlight of the horse racing calendar for many reasons. One of which though is that every single race is significant. Every single race has its place and the Festival wouldn’t be the same without it.

As mentioned countless times, there are some which are talked about more than others – the Cheltenham Gold Cup for example – but across the four days of racing, each individual race is worth betting on and indeed watching.

This includes the third race on Ladies day, the second day of the Cheltenham Festival. This is the RSA Steeple Chase which is a Grade 1 National Hunt chase, competed by novices aged five-years and over.

It is an event that tests the stamina of the competitors with three miles and 110 yards to cover and 19 fences to jump. Of course many horses are trained specifically for this event, so it is often an extremely closely fought contest from start to finish.

There can be valuable winners for punters too. Last year for example, Boston’s Angel emerged victorious from the rest of the field with the Jessica Harrington trained horse available at 16/1 prior to the race.

There are of course favourites for success in the 2012 event though with the much fancied and heavily discussed Grands Crus currently available at around 5/1. Bobs worth is likely to be the main contender at 8/1, while Bog Warrior is next in line at 10/1.

As mentioned though, the winner in this enduring event can come from further afield. Therefore, the likes of Join Together (14/1), Last Instalment (16/1) and Cue Card (20/1) cannot be ruled out.

Overall, it is much easier to assess the field for this race closer to the event, but now is a good time to start laying down some markers.

Assessing the National Hunt Steeple Chase form as often as possible is advised as is keeping an eye out for a valuable bet from further afield.

The RSA Steeple Chase gets underway at the 2012 Cheltenham Festival gets underway at 2.40pm on the Wednesday 14th March 2012.

Resident Cheltenham blogger Cathryn Fry takes a look at the recent Cheltenham International meeting and is expecting great things of Join Together – this is her report on proceedings!

One of the standout performances from Cheltenham’s International meeting was that of Join Together in the three mile one & a half furlong Novice Chase.

Such was the manner of the victory it caused his trainer Paul Nicholls to rethink the seasonal target of the four mile National Hunt Chase to the RSA Chase & also saw his official rating leap from 146 to 157.

His revised rating is already higher than the last four winners of the RSA (Bostons Angel 152, Weapons Amnesty 152, Cooldine 155 & Albertas Run 155) Nicky Henderson’s Mossley who had defeated Join Together over Hurdles at the corresponding meeting last year finished twelve lengths adrift of him on this occasion. However he did return very distressed & this was not his true showing. There is another day for him.

Join together is unlucky not to have three chase wins against his name; arguably he would have won at Chepstow on his first start of the season had he not crumpled on landing. At Cheltenham in November he looked outpaced before coming right back on the bridle to win strongly from the extremely useful Teaforthree. That rival went on to win very nicely at Chepstow next time out.

We have seen that Join Together can be ridden with waiting tactics or from the front & that he is versatile where the ground is concerned. All this with his ability to handle Cheltenham must make him a major player in the RSA. If he wins his next assignment which would seem likely considering there is probably more improvement to come, expect his odds for March to tumble. At the time of writing the 14/1 that’s available in many places looks exceptional value.

The RSA is shaping up to be quite a race from what we have been treated to so far. At the moment the line up looks likely to consist of the monster that is Grand Crus, The form yardstick Champion Court & last year’s Albert Bartlett winner Bobs Worth. Along with the likely Irish contenders of Last Instalment, Bog Warrior & last year’s Neptune winner First Lieutenant. This mix would be heightened further if Sir Des Champs were to put in an appearance.

As I type this it’s the 16th December, in exactly three months’ time it will be Gold Cup Day. We will by then know the answer to the RSA puzzle & it would be no surprise if that turned out to be Join Together.

Cathryn Fry

@cathrynfry on Twitter

*The Who 1972 – Join Together with the Band.

I don’t know if they were being over-cautious here and mentioning the problem thus causing many a worry for those that have already backed him but all appears to be well again after a canter on Saturday.

As a result Long Run is now favourite at 11/4 with Stan James but if Punchestowns is fully fit I maintain he is the one to beat. There are too many worries with Long Run for me (age, jumping and jockey) to contemplate backing him at around 5/2.

Besides, I prefer Punchestowns of the Henderson runners (which also includes Burton Port who I just don’t see as good enough). Other than that, I don’t think Diamond Harry likes it up him, or will jump well enough, and if The Nightingale runs it will be against his trainer’s wishes, which is enough to put me off.

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It looks like The Nightingale will miss Cheltenham altogether for Aintree if Paul Nicholls gets his way but there was a turnaround in the plans for Burton Port who will now tackle the race. Henderson commented after he won the Reynoldstown Chase that he would probably wait for Aintree but I suspect Trevor Hemmings wants a runner so they changed their plan.

Weapon’s Amnesty is a tough, hardy horse and I’m hopeful he can finish in the frame. His jumping is a worry, but he tends to warm up during his races. I’m more worried that some of the stable’s horses have had mucus in their systems. If he is clear of those problems that have supposedly affected Solwhit and Pittoni (see Champion Hurdle), jumps okay, and the ground is no worse than good-soft, then I think he is just the kind of horse to put up a big run back up to 3m which he needs.

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It is my strong opinion that the handicap route will be his chosen option especially as he would near enough be favourite for the William Hill Trophy and there is also a big bonus for Plumpton winners at the Festival and that is where he won his chase debut.

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Bensalem is rated 143 and I am sure he rates him in a different league to Fork Lightning so we could easily see him swerve the RSA Chase for the staying handicap on the opening day but he will have to brush up on his jumping as a bad mistake put him on the deck at Haydock and another bad mistake cost him victory over Diamond Harry at Newbury last time out in my opinion.

Weird Al’s form just doesn’t look enough following Knockara Beau’s run in the Reynoldstown Chase when second to Burton Port, who himself made hard work of winning at odds-on until the run-in.

Henderson hinted afterwards that Burton Port is more likely to be aimed at Aintree than Cheltenham. The disappointing aspect of the race was the non-declaring of Punchestowns who now will head to the RSA Chase off just two chase runs like Diamond Harry and Uimhiraceathair unlike the last ten winners that had three or more runs.

I would still prefer Long Run to Diamond Harry though who won at Newbury on the same afternoon, in fact, I prefer Bensalem to Diamond Harry as well as Nick Williams’ charge didn’t jump as well here as he did over the baby fences at Haydock and I am pretty sure that Bensalem would have beaten him but for a jolting error just as the race was hotting up.

I am just not convinced that Diamond Harry is at his very best over three miles but I am very sure that the trip is exactly what Bensalem wants. I also don’t like the fact Diamond Harry will head to the RSA Chase off the back of just two chase runs as the last ten winners had at least three runs over fences.

Henderson may also have a third run in Burton Port who entered the fray with an easy winner from possible NH Chase candidate The Sliotar at Southwell making it two out of two over fences for him. Will he run three though?

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Paul Nicholls was mentioning this race as a target for The Nightingale on Saturday (previously was a toss up between this and the Jewson) but he is another that will have two chase runs at most.

Uimhiracethair just got up to force a dead heat at Navan yesterday and needs to improve bundles on that form and he is another with just two chase starts at present.

Weapon’s Amnesty did nothing wrong with a good second in the Dr P J Moriarty Chase and I thought he ran a perfectly respectable RSA Chase trial as the drop down in trip would not suit this strong stayer and he also much prefers decent ground so the testing surface would have also been against him.

He did take a while again for his jumping to warm to the task which has been a trait in his races and that is the area that would worry me. As for the surprise all-the-way winner, Citizen Vic, Willie Mullins won this race with Cooldine last season before winning the RSA Chase and he is clearly improving at a rate of knots so it would be dangerous to overlook him but, as far as ante-post action is concerned, his trainer also mentioned the Powers Gold Cup at Fairyhouse as a possible objective so he is no certain runner here as yet.

The injury to Mighty Man has ruled him out for the season which has strengthened Punchestown’s position at the head of the market after his win at Sandown. As far as his RSA Chase chance is concerned, it is noticeable that bad error occurred at the first downhill fence he has jumped in a race and there are at least four of those in the ‘RSA’, two of which during the hottest part of the race – three out and two out.

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The fact that his stablemate and second-favourite, Long Run, heads to an Arkle trial this weekend has heightened speculation that he may bypass the race but no one really knows, not even the connections apparently. Weird Al confirmed his victory over Knockara Beau in the Towton Novices’ Chase from when they met at Cheltenham in November.

I felt the latter may have gained his revenge on 8lbs better terms but it shows just how nicely Weird Al is progressing to give him a more comprehensive beating on worse terms this time and he looks like being the only serious contender with winning chase form at the course going into the race, a feat he has achieved twice.

Three fairly recent winners of that Wetherby Grade 2 race have also finished second here which is another pointer in his favour. Another performance that was hard to fault was Tazbar’s defeat of some useful types by 14 lengths over 2m3f given the trip would have been plenty short enough for the Feltham Chase runner-up.

That was a form boost for Long Run who beat him with considerable ease at Kempton and it could be his best chance of picking up a top staying chase may be at Aintree over 3m1f.