Our team of writers pick out their favourite antepost bets for 2024, including one at a huge price for the Grand National plus an 80/1 shot for golf's US Open.
Horse racing
Sail Away to win the Randox Grand National
Christmas is a time for indulgence but also a spot of nostalgia so let me take you back to October 2021, not long after fans were allowed to return to racecourses in Britain following the pandemic. Corach Rambler made his first appearance at Aintree Racecourse, winning by six lengths, and the rest is history. But what of the runner-up that day, SAIL AWAY, who was conceding the big horse 6lb in weight?
Dan Skelton’s charge has only won two of his seven subsequent chase starts but has progressed quite nicely all along, showing a stamina test on decent ground to be his optimum, and he clearly needed his comeback run over an inadequate trip on easy going at Newbury. The subsequent effort at Doncaster can almost certainly be scrapped as a meaningful piece of form due to the omission of eight of the fences due to low sun on Town Moor.
A return to Ayr for the Scottish Grand National may be the ultimate aim at this stage for Sail Away, but I doubt connections will be able to resist a shot at the main event first, providing all goes well on his next start which could be in something like the Classic Chase at Warwick, a venue at which he’s won before.
At 66/1, Sail Away looks a potentially very big price to exact some sort of revenge on the 2023 National hero (16/1 favourite Corach Rambler) should the pair meet again next spring and he’s certainly not one to be losing faith with yet.
Matt Brocklebank
Indelible to win the Investec Oaks
John Gosden and Aidan O’Brien have dominated the Oaks at Epsom in recent years, winning the last 10 renewals between them, but I’m hoping the sequence can be broken next season.
The Gosdens perhaps don’t have their usual firepower in this division and I’m not convinced by either of O’Brien’s market leaders for this race, Opera Singer and Ylang Ylang, as the former might not stay 1m4f and the latter doesn’t look the most straightforward.
The last trainer to win the Oaks other than the aforementioned was Ralph Beckett and he had a terrific 2023, looking well set to unleash a strong team for the Classic trials in the spring.
One of those could be his Shamardal filly INDELIBLE who is out of the Oaks runner-up, Midday, as she made a big impression when showing a smart turn of foot to win over a mile on the Lingfield polytrack on November 5 on her second start.
She has the pedigree and the promise and at 33/1 she’s worth a long-range stab for a trainer who has won this race twice before.
Ben Linfoot
Football
Portugal to win Euro 2024
Even the most patriotic England fan surely cannot believe Gareth Southgate's side offer any kind of value as 3/1 favourites to win this summer's European Championship, painfully short when we consider they were 9/2 with significant home advantage at Euro 2020 and 13/2 to lift the World Cup a little over 12 months ago.
Outsiders of a group of five nations priced significantly shorter than the rest are PORTUGAL, a team that are worthy of consideration at 8/1.
Former Belgium and Everton boss Roberto Martinez has a 100% record since taking charge in January and while their qualifying group was weak, progressing with 10 wins from 10, nine clean sheets and 36 goals scored remains impressive.
Almost as impressive as the seamless way in which Martinez has quickly moved on from the circus that engulfed the Portugal camp at Qatar 2022 over the role of Cristiano Ronaldo, who has since delivered 10 qualifying goals for his new manager.
Aston Villa to win the Conference League
ASTON VILLA have been the team of 2023 after an Unai Emery transformation. When Steven Gerrard was sacked 14 months ago Villa sat above the relegation zone on goals scored.
A near two points per game average under Emery secured a remarkable seventh-place finish, form which seemed impossible to sustain. And yet they would have been top at Christmas had they beaten Sheffield United, instead drawing 1-1 and settling for third.
It's seen the bookies scramble to cut them in from 400 to 20/1 to win a first league title since 1981 and while the value has been slashed away domestically, it arguably remains for VILLA TO WIN THE CONFERENCE LEAGUE.
Advised in our outright preview as 4/1 favourites they are still available at a very reasonable 3/1 despite further progress since that was published in September.
History is very much on their side too. Since the competition's inception, both winners (Roma and West Ham) were antepost favourites. The teams who follow Villa in the market are a long way off top domestically and they deserve to be shorter.
And few can match Emery's record in continental competition. He lifted the Europa League four times during spells with Sevilla and Villarreal between 2014 and 2021.
Joe Townsend
Cricket
Chennai Super Kings to win the IPL
With five IPL title wins already, CHENNAI SUPER KINGS are the joint most successful franchise in the history of the competition, and it will take something special to stop them from going all the way again when the 2024 edition begins in March.
CSK have won two of the last three renewals and will be defending champions following their thrilling defeat of Gujarat Titans in last year’s final, once again showcasing the great strength of this team under pressure in the big moments.
Ravi Jadeja was the hero on that occasion, and with MS Dhoni returning for another season as captain, along with Ruturaj Gaikwad and Devon Conway, the core of the side remains.
A fruitful auction, which saw the men in yellow pick up Daryl Mitchell and Rachin Ravindra – two of the stars of the recent 50-over World Cup – strengthens an already impressive squad, and CSK will very hard to beat once again.
Richard Mann
Golf
Min Woo Lee to win the US Open
Power is typically key to the US Open and MIN WOO LEE has it in spades, but that's not the only base he has covered for a return to Pinehurst, which is somewhat Australian in appearance and looks an ideal place for the youngster to challenge for a major.
Min Woo was placed in the 2023 renewal when sent off at massive odds and ever since then he's taken his game up a notch, winning twice late in the year and contending in some strong events worldwide.
With a PGA Tour card in his pocket for the first time, this potential world number one should continue to climb the ladder and having already built a strong record in majors, it's far from the worst idea to back him for each of the four.
However, he's as short as 25/1 in places for the Masters, where his sometimes iffy approach play could be a problem, and by far the most suitable on paper looks to be the US Open – especially one held at a course that played firm and fast in 2014.
More of the same and Lee will love conditions, just as he did last year when rough wasn't significant. Take 66/1 and bigger and hope for a statement win during the course of the next six months.
Ben Coley
Tennis
Matteo Berrettini to win Wimbledon
There’s been plenty of talk over the past decade or so about how the Wimbledon grass has slowed down, but a 135mph serve remains a massive weapon on a surface which sees the ball skid through fairly low, causing problems for the receiver.
You only have to look at the list of recent finalists to see this – Milos Ranoic (2016), Marin Cilic (2017), Kevin Anderson (2018), MATTEO BERRETTINI (2021), Nick Kyrgios (2022).
Of those, only Cilic and Anderson have made Grand Slam finals on other surfaces where their big shot doesn’t get quite the same cut-through.
The players that pique the interest in this market are, unsurprisingly, cut from the same cloth, and Berrettini looks the one to be on at this early stage.
Berrettini’s record on grass is excellent. He’s 36-8 on the surface at tour level, winning four titles in the process, as well as reaching that Wimbledon final in which he won the opening set against Djokovic before losing in four.
It’s also easy to forget he was 9-0 heading into Wimbledon 2022 where he tested positive for Covid-19 on the morning of his first-round match.
Even during his injury-hit 2023 campaign when he had little match preparation, Berrettini beat Lorenzo Sonego, Alex de Minaur and Alex Zverev en route to the last 16 where he actually took the first set off eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz.
In short, Berrettini has to go off shorter than 33/1 if he’s fit and granted a bit of luck it would be no surprise to see him in another final.
Andy Schooler
Cycling
Wout van Aert to win Paris-Roubaix
It was somewhat of a frustrating year for WOUT VAN AERT despite winning E3 Saxo Classic and finishing on the podium at Milan San-Remo, Gent-Wevelgem in Flanders Fields, World Championship Road Race, European Championship Road Race and Paris-Roubaix, but compensation awaits in the months ahead.
Paris-Roubaix would have been the race that got away, as when looking the strongest rider in the lead group van Aert suffered a puncture which allowed Mathieu van der Poel to solo his way to victory 15km from the finish.
After finishing second in 2022 edition and third in 2023, van Aert is knocking on the door to win the cobbled classic and 2024 could be the year he finally gets his head in front.
Nathan Jackson
Posted at 2130 GMT on 24/12/23
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