Gordon Elliot is one of the great trainers in Cheltenham’s history. Find out about his winners and how he compares against the best trainers.
Cheltenham Festival has a long and illustrious history, containing a list of many legendary figures including horses, jockeys, and trainers. Gordon Elliott has certainly put his name in the mix for that list, etching himself into the history books forever.
Looking back, how many winners has he trained in the festival? Read on to learn more about his history in the festival, covering his winners, famous victories, and how he compares to the best trainers at Cheltenham.
How many winners has Gordon Elliott had at Cheltenham Festival?
Heading into the 2026 festival, Gordon Elliott has had 41 winners, dating back to 2011. Compared to other trainers, his tally of wins has been racked up in a short space of time, with others competing and winning since before 2000. No wonder he has amassed so many wins so quickly, though, with highly successful years like 2018 and 2020, where he managed eight and seven winners respectively.
Over the years, Elliott has trained iconic horses like Tiger Roll and has had victories in events like the Gold Cup and Champion Bumper, hardly leaving himself short of memorable moments at the festival.
Each of Gordon Elliott’s Cheltenham winners
Below, we have broken down every one of Gordon Elliott’s Cheltenham Festival winners by year:
2011
National Hunt Chase – Chicago Grey
Coral Cup – Carlito Brigante
2013
Fred Winter Juvenile Novices’ Handicap Hurdle – Flaxen Flare
2014
Triumph Hurdle – Tiger Roll
2015
National Hunt Chase – Cause of Causes
2016
Cheltenham Gold Cup – Don Cossack
Coral Cup – Diamond King
Fulke Walwyn Kim Muir Challenge Cup – Cause of Causes
2017
Champion Bumper – Fayonagh
Mares’ Hurdle – Apples Jade
Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase – Cause of Causes
Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle – Champagne Classic
National Hunt Chase – Tiger Roll
Supreme Novices’ Hurdle – Labaik
2018
Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle – Samcro
Plate Handicap Chase – The Storyteller
Fred Winter Juvenile Novices’ Handicap Hurdle – Veneer of Charm
Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase – Tiger Roll
Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle – Blow by Blow
Pertemps Final – Delta Work
Triumph Hurdle – Farclas
Golden Miller Novices Chase – Shattered Love
2019
Champion Bumper – Envoi Allen
Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase – Tiger Roll
Pertemps Final – Sire Du Berlais
2020
Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle – Envoi Allen
Fred Winter Juvenile Novices’ Handicap Hurdle – Aramax
Fulke Walwyn Kim Muir Challenge Cup – Milan Native
National Hunt Chase – Ravenhill
Pertemps Final – Sire Du Berlais
Golden Miller Novices’ Chase – Samcro
Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Chase – Chosen Mate
2022
Coral Cup – Commander of Fleet
Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase – Delta Work
2023
Boodles Juvenile Handicap Hurdle – Jazzy Matty
Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase – Delta Work
Paddy Power Stayers’ Hurdle – Sire Du Berlais
2024
Paddy Power Stayers’ Hurdle – Teahupoo
Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle – Stellar Story
Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle – Better Days Ahead
2025
Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle – Wodhooh
Gordon Elliott’s biggest Cheltenham wins
Within his 41 Cheltenham wins, Gordon Elliott isn’t short of notable victories to look back upon fondly. Here are some of his biggest and best accomplishments at the festival that you should know:
Cheltenham Gold Cup, 2016
The biggest prize of them all at Cheltenham, winning the Gold Cup is an achievement not many can say that they have accomplished. Gordon Elliott did just that with Don Cossack in 2016, claiming victory in the horse’s last-ever competitive outing. After his first two entries at Cheltenham seeing him fall in the RSA Chase and then finish third at The Ryanair Chase, this win is even more impressive.
Stayers’ Hurdle, 2023 and 2024
Being the headline race of day three at Cheltenham Festival, the Stayers’ Hurdle is an impressive addition to Elliott’s tally, especially with him winning it twice. His 2023 win with Sir Du Berlais was a shock result, with the 11-year-old horse pulling through despite having 33/1 odds. The victory was the horse’s first since back-to-back wins in the Pertemps Final in 2019 and 2020.
Elliott then won the Stayers’ Hurdle again in 2024, retaining the title with Teahupoo who finished in second place the year before. Winning in consecutive years for one of Cheltenham’s classic races is an accomplishment to be proud of, with Teahupoo certainly warranting his favourite status.
Tiger Roll
As previously mentioned, Tiger Roll is one of the most recognisable names in recent horse racing history. Elliott helped to lead Tiger Roll to four wins in three different Cheltenham races, including the Triumph Hurdle, National Hunt Chase, and Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase (which he won twice).
The first win with Tiger Roll came in 2014 in the form of the Triumph Hurdle, beating the favourite Calipto and Nicky Henderson’s Kentucky Hyden. Despite not then winning for three years, Tiger Roll eventually went on a winning streak and won for three consecutive years. Victory in the 2017 National Hunt Chase was followed up by back-to-back wins in the Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase.
Incidentally, his two wins in 2018 and 2019 combined with his 2021 triumph under Denise Foster make him the most successful horse in this Cheltenham fixture.
Where does Gordon Elliott rank among Cheltenham’s most successful trainers?
With 41 wins at the Festival throughout his career so far, you may wonder where Gordon Elliott slots into the list of the best trainers Cheltenham has ever seen.
Well, with this total, he has made himself the second most successful Irish trainer in the history of Cheltenham Festival, with only Willie Mullins sitting above him. And, following on from his 2025 victory in the Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle with Wodhooh, he just overtakes the well-renowned Fulke Walwyn’s 40 wins. This win also took him up to fourth place in the all-time rankings of Cheltenham trainers, meaning that he’s only nine wins off Paul Nicholl’s tally of 50.
Not being far off the 50 mark, he will want to become the fourth trainer ever to reach that total at this year’s festival, with Willie Mullins, Nicky Henderson, and Paul Nicholls sitting in the top three, on 113, 75, and 50 wins respectively.
Though Elliott has also impressively placed himself on the list of Gold Cup winners, like many other legends, he isn’t close to the record, with Tom Dreaper out in front with five victories.
Will we see any Gordon Elliott Cheltenham winners in 2026?
Now that Cheltenham Festival is on the horizon, it’s good to look ahead to see if any of Gordon Elliott’s horses may be there. So, which horses may we see from Elliott and what events might they compete in? Here is what you can expect:
Brighterdaysahead
This 6-year-old has a record to take note of, with nine wins (plus two seconds and a third) in 13 runs. Elliott expects Brighterdaysahead to compete in the Ryanair Mares’ Hurdle and has even compared her to his Gold Cup winner Don Cossack, saying she is as good as anything he has seen.
King Of Kingsfield
Another one of Gordon Elliott’s potential competitors is King Of Kingsfield. His recent record is solid with him obtaining three wins in his last six races, proving his competitive abilities. Whether he races in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle or the County Hurdle is uncertain, but he is likely to compete in 2026.
Better Days Ahead
Better Days Ahead has four wins in his last ten outings, boding well for the next edition of Cheltenham. The expectation is that he will compete in the Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle. And, with Elliott having a winner in the most recent running of this race, he is sure to have a good chance in 2026.
