- Festival Races
Champion Hurdle Odds
Find the latest Champion Hurdle odds, tip and racecard below.
Tuesday 15th March 2022
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Cheltenham 15:05 Result
Unibet Champion Hurdle Challenge Trophy (Grade 1) (GBB Race)
- 4yo+, 10 Runners
- jumps, Turf
- Winner £189,911, 2nd £71,550, 3rd £35,809, 4th £17,888, 5th £8,978, 6th £4,489, 7th £2,228, 8th £1,148
- Distance 2m 0f 87y
- Going SOFT (Good to soft in places) changing to GOOD TO SOFT (Soft in places) after Race 5 (3.40)
- Off Time 15:05
- Winning Time 03:54
- Race Status: WeighedIn
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1stHoneysuckle
- Rachael Blackmore
- Henry De Bromhead
- 7 years, 11-3
6 Tips4 Naps11/10 Fmidfield on outer, headway and tracked leaders 4 out, good jump 2 out, soon led going easily, shaken up and went clear approaching last, ridden and edged right but went further clear run-in, impressive
Naps:
- Daily Express
- Daily Post
- Racing Post
- The Sun
Tipped by:
- The Scout - Daily Express
- Garry Owen - Daily Record
- POSTDATA
- Steve Boow - SPOTLIGHT
- TOPSPEED
- Templegate - The Sun
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2nd6 ½Sharjah
- Paul Townend
- W P Mullins
- 8 years, 11-10
11/1took keen hold, towards rear, headway from 3 out, tracked leaders when bit short of room just after 2 out, soon pushed along and no chance with winner, ridden and went second approaching last, kept on run-in
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3rd3Epatante
- Aidan Coleman
- Nicky Henderson
- 7 years, 11-3
4 Tips4/1held up in rear, not fluent and bumped 2nd, not fluent 4 out, not fluent 3 out, tracked leaders when bit short of room on inner just after 2 out, soon pushed along and no chance with winner, ridden and went third approaching last, no impression run-in
Tipped by:
- Robin Goodfellow - Daily Mail
- James Burn - LAMBOURN
- Steve Mason - RP Ratings
- Rob Wright - The Times
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4th1 ½Aspire Tower
- Robbie Power
- Henry De Bromhead
- 5 years, 11-10
1 Tip33/1took keen hold, tracked leaders, not fluent 4 out, led just after 3 out, not fluent 2 out, soon headed and bit short of room, ridden and lost third approaching last, well held but stayed on run-in
Tipped by:
- Marlborough - Telegraph
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5th2Not So Sleepy
- Jonathan Burke
- Hughie Morrison
- 9 years, 11-10
125/1took keen hold, tracked leaders, not fluent 3 out, soon lost position, not fluent and ridden 2 out, rallied approaching last, kept on but no impression run-in
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6th1 ¼Silver Streak
- Tom O'Brien
- Evan Williams
- 8 years, 11-10
22/1led, briefly headed just before 3rd, pushed along and headed just after 3 out, ridden after 2 out, weakened approaching last
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7th¾Saldier
- Danny Mullins
- W P Mullins
- 7 years, 11-10
80/1took keen hold, always towards rear, not fluent and pushed along briefly 2nd, hampered by faller 3rd, mistake 5 out, ridden 2 out, made no impression
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8th11Goshen
- Jamie Moore
- Gary Moore
- 5 years, 11-10
3 Tips3 Naps11/2took keen hold, close up, briefly led just before 3rd, not fluent 3rd, soon hung badly right and raced wide, unrideable from 5 out, nudged along and weakened after 3 out
Naps:
- Whistler - Sunday Telegraph
- - The Guardian
- Arthur Shone - The Leader
Tipped by:
- Newsboy - Daily Mirror
- The Guardian
- Jason Heavey - The Star
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9th6James Du Berlais
- Daryl Jacob
- W P Mullins
- 5 years, 11-10
14/1midfield on inner, mistake 3 out, ridden 2 out, soon weakened
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FELL
towards rear, fell 3rd
Tote Returns
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Total Win£1.8
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Exacta£13.5
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Trifecta£51.8
Champion Hurdle Tips
Tom Lee is siding with the short priced favourite.
Honeysuckle
What is the Champion Hurdle?
The Champion Hurdle is the feature race on the first day of the Cheltenham Festival, Champion Day, which is traditionally held on a Tuesday in March. A Grade One contest, the Champion Hurdle is run on the old course over a distance of two miles and 87 yards, and its roll of honour features several well-known names, including Istabraq, See You Then and Persian War.
What happened in the 2021 Champion Hurdle?
Henry de Bromhead's Honeysuckle was a blistering winner of the Champion Hurdle, as under a fine ride from star jockey Rachael Blackmore the mare pulled well clear of the second placed Sharjah, with former champion Epatante finishing in third.
The history of the Champion Hurdle
The Champion Hurdle was first run in 1927, with the Bill Payne-trained Blaris taking the inaugural crown. The race quickly grew in popularity, and flourished in the immediate post-war period, with just three horses - National Spirit, Hatton’s Grace and Sir Ken - sharing the crown between them from 1947-1954. The seventies would also prove to be a golden era for hurdling, with Persian War sealing a third straight win in the race in 1970, before Bula, Comedy of Errors, Night Nurse and Monksfield would all go on to become dual-winners of the race in the same decade. The eighties would prove to be just as significant, with Sea Pigeon completing a double in 1981, and Dawn Run becoming just the second mare to win the race in 1984, before winning the Cheltenham Gold Cup two years later - she remains the only horse to complete that particular double.
See You Then was another marquee figure from that decade, winning three straight renewals from 1985-1987, something which was matched at the turn of the century by the great Istabraq, whose wins came in 1998, 1999 and 2000. Istabraq would be robbed of the chance to complete an unprecedented four-timer in 2001 due to the foot and mouth crisis, and he would be retired when pulled-up in the race a year later. More recently, Hurricane Fly became the first horse to regain the Champion Hurdle when winning the race for a second time in 2013, while Buveur d’Air won back to back renewals in 2017 and 2018 for Nicky Henderson, before being denied the hat-trick by fellow J.P. McManus horse Espoir D’Allen in 2019.
Who is the most iconic winner of Champion Hurdle?
Like in many of the races at the Cheltenham Festival, a case can be made for several Champion Hurdle winners as the greatest of all time, though it is difficult to ignore the Aidan O’Brien-trained Istabraq. An outstanding novice, Istabraq won the Royal Sun Alliance Novices’ Hurdle in 1997 (now known as the Ballymore), and quickly took control of the two-mile division the following season, winning four straight starts before winning his first Champion Hurdle crown in 1998. Istabraq’s remarkable winning run came to an end on his next start in the Aintree Hurdle, but that start came in atrocious conditions, and he quickly regained the winning thread, winning the Champion Hurdle for the second year running the following season, before completing the hat-trick in 2000 - becoming just the fifth horse to do so. Istabraq was robbed of the chance to seal an unprecedented four-timer in 2001 due to the foot and mouth crisis, and although his career would end with a whimper in the 2002 Champion Hurdle - when pulled-up, he bowed out as a true hurdling great regardless.
📆 March 14, 2000
📍@CheltenhamRaces
Istabraq recorded his third successive victory in the Champion Hurdle. 🏆🏆🏆
#CheltenhamFestival #IconicMoments https://t.co/i3Mfpo0YGM
Are there any trials for the Champion Hurdle?
There are several trials for the Champion Hurdle throughout the season, though the most important are considered to be the Fighting Fifth Hurdle at Newcastle and the Christmas Hurdle at Kempton. Other races to note during the season are the Elite Hurdle and the Kingwell Hurdle (both at Wincanton), the Ascot Hurdle, the Champion Hurdle Trial (Haydock), the Contenders Hurdle (Sandown), the Betfair Hurdle (Newbury), and the Greatwood Hurdle and the International Hurdle (both at Cheltenham). Over in Ireland, it could be worth keeping an eye on the WKD Hurdle (Down Royal), the Morgiana Hurdle (Punchestown), the Hatton's Grace Hurdle (Fairyhouse), the Red Mills Hurdle (Gowran Park) and the Ryanair Hurdle and the Irish Champion Hurdle (both at Leopardstown).
Who is the most successful jockey in the Champion Hurdle?
The joint-most successful jockeys in the history of the Champion Hurdle are Tim Molony and Ruby Walsh, with four wins apiece. The latter’s wins in the race came with Hurricane Fly (2011 and 2013), Faugheen (2015) and Annie Power (2016), while Tim Molony won the Champion Hurdle with Hatton’s Grace (1951) and Sir Ken (1952, 1953, 1954).
Who is the most successful trainer in the Champion Hurdle?
The most successful trainer in the history of the Champion Hurdle is Nicky Henderson, who won the race on eight occasions occasions, training See You Then (1985, 1986, 1987), Punjabi (2009), Binocular (2010),Buveur d’Air (2017 & 2018) and Epatante in 2020.