Cheltenham November Meeting 2025: Shloer Chase race analysis and preview 

Racing’s elite will return to the Gloucestershire countryside this weekend, as Cheltenham’s 2025 November meeting gets underway. 

Serving as the 2026 Cheltenham Festival appetiser, the meeting has 22 races scheduled to take place – one of which is the (Grade Two) Shloer Chase. 

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When does the Shloer Chase take place?

The race takes place on Friday, November, 14 at 14:55pm – and two miles of Cheltenham’s iconic old course is the distance that challengers must conquer in order to claim victory. 

It is a race which is a known hunting ground for Cheltenham Festival protagonists hoping to get a feel for the track where they will look to take home a top prize in March. 

This year’s renewal will see trainer Nicky Henderson’s stable star Jonbon look to win the race for the third consecutive time.

He will make his seasonal reappearance off the back of almost six months off the track, with his last run coming at Sandown – where he was beaten by Il Etait Temps, who was having his first run since May 2024. 

Final run

It was the final run of a season in which he made it 10 career Grade One victories, when he claimed his second win in the Melling Chase – his fourth consecutive (Grade One) win at the Grand National meeting. 

The JP McManus-owned star is no stranger to Cheltenham, though this meeting has been more fruitful, having finished second at the racecourse’s showpiece festival in all three of his runs, including in the 2023 and 2025 Champion Chase. 

After that Aintree win, Henderson said: “The Champion Chase just doesn’t seem to work for him, which is a pity. 

“It went all wrong for him at Cheltenham, but he proved today he just loves doing what he did. 

“It was just unfortunate the tape went literally straight across his face [at Cheltenham] and then he went backwards and was on the back foot from the first fence. 

“He just jumps so well and he trusts Nico [De Boinville], and Nico trusts Jonbon. It’s lovely to watch.”

Betting contenders

Jonbon is the ante-post favourite (2/5) with his clear favouritism challenged only by trainer Dan Skelton’s L’eau Du Sud, who is second in the betting, at 5/1. 

His Arkle Trophy win – on this card last season – preceded his maiden Grade One victory, which came in the Henry VIII Novices chase, at Sandown. 

Those two races were the middle pair of four victories last season, bookended by a Grade Three win and his second Grade Two win – which meant that he started his chasing career undefeated. 

His subsequent defeats in Grade One company, at the Cheltenham Festival and Grand National Festival, weren’t without promise and the seven-year-old remains relatively unexposed. 

L’eau Du Sud is due to head a pair of horses looking to give Skelton his first win in the race since back-to-back wins in 2021 and 2022, with the lesser-fancied Calico also in the betting at 12/1. 

The nine-year-old won on his seasonal reappearance last month, which came in a Handicap Chase when he defeated 25 rivals at this course. 

Rivalry renewed

It was his second consecutive victory in that race and he is due to re-oppose old rival Matata, who he defeated in both of those wins. 

The Nigel & Willy Twiston-Davies-trained seven-year-old finished second to Calico in the 2024 renewal, but could only manage seventh this year – despite going off at shorter odds.  

Though Calico was one of the horses he defeated in his last victory, which came at Cheltenham on this card last year. 

Boothill, who was second in the Shloer Chase last year, comes next in the ante-post betting, having had only three runs since April 2024. 

The latest of which came in January, where he was heavily beaten – last of four runners – by Jonbon, in the Clarence House chase, at Ascot. 

Back-to-back wins

His subsequent long absence suggests that something was amiss there, but the now 10-year-old gelding is winless since back-to-back wins in November 2023. 

Those victories came in Grade Two and Grade Three company and preceded three other runs that season, two of which he succumbed to fences, whilst the other ended in defeat to Jonbon. 

He trades at 8/1 to go one better than last year for trainer Harry Fry, whilst last year’s third-placed finisher Edwardstone is next, at 10/1. 

The 11-year-old is winless in Grade One races since December 2022, when he won his second Tingle Creek at Sandown, a race that he has since finished second, before falling the year after – both behind Jonbon. 

That win in the Tingle Creek came on his seasonal reappearance, off the back of a campaign where he won five consecutive races, all in Graded company – highlighted by his first Tingle Creek and subsequent Arkle win, at the 2022 Cheltenham Festival. 

Edwardstone has won only one race since that second Tingle Creek triumph – in December 2022 – but has been placed on a number of occasions across Graded races. 

He seems sure to run his race should he iron out any jumping mistakes, which have cost him in numerous races over recent years. 

Liberty Hunter was a faller when last seen in the Champion Chase, back in March, but had recorded form figures of 12312 in races since January 2024. 

His two victories came in Handicap races at this course – in one of which he defeated Matata – whilst he also ran well to be second in the 2024 Cheltenham Festival. 

At nine years old, he has had only 16 career starts and looks certain to give his running for trainer Evan Williams. 

READ MORE: Cheltenham November Meeting 2025: PaddyPower Gold Cup analysis and preview