Horse Racing stats man, Andy has contributed to OLBG for 18 years - An Ipswich fan and F1 fanatic, he also contributes EFL football and Motor Sport opinion.
2026 Champion Hurdle Preview
The Champion Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain, open to horses aged four years or older. Held annually on the opening day of the Cheltenham Festival in March, it is contested over approximately 2 miles and 87 yards on the Old Course at Cheltenham Racecourse, featuring eight hurdles.
As the most prestigious hurdle race in the National Hunt calendar, it serves as the final leg of the Triple Crown of Hurdling with the Fighting Fifth Hurdle and Christmas Hurdle as the first two legs.
Sharpen your Champion Hurdle predictions with our in-depth study of past race trends and trainer performance, then maximize your returns with the Cheltenham free bets.
Champion Hurdle Information:
Our dedicated Cheltenham tips page will not only bring you predictions from the OLBG racing tipsters for the upcoming card that includes the Champion Hurdle but will also have predictions for each meeting at Cheltenham throughout the season so be sure to head over there. We cover every race at the Cheltenham Festival and below you can find links to all of the races for each of Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday & Friday.
Best Horse Racing Betting Sites 2025
How competitive is the Champion Hurdle market? When looking at the over-rounds for the last 20 renewals, the most competitive market was in 2023 when the race had an over-round of 108%. The race in 2020 was a race that was most in the bookie's favour with an over-round of 128%, whilst on average over the last 20 renewals of the Champion Hurdle, the over-round has been 118%, which means the bookie expects to pay out £100 for every £118 which is bet.
Below you will find the 2026 Champion Hurdle Trends, see which patterns have occurred over the recent renewals that you may be able to use for the next renewal, we also have a section that looks at the Champion Hurdle Trend Analysis.
These are the top three quickest-run Champion Hurdle over the last 20 renewals:
- Annie Power (3:45.10) in 2016
- Jezki (3:45.25) in 2014
- Brave Inca (3:50.00) in 2006
Looking at the future form, is the winner worth following next time out? From the past 20 if you had followed the winner of the Champion Hurdle next time out then you would have backed a total of 12 winners. Backing all 18 runners who have been out since to win at SP next time out, would have returned an LSP of -0.10. Before placing your bet on the 2026 Champion Hurdle see which other runners today are being backed on the racing predictions page.
The runner that holds the record over the past 20 renewals for the slowest time in the race was set in the 2024 renewal when State Man from W P Mullins under the guidance of Paul Townend, won in a time of 4:13.88, whilst at the other end of the spectrum, Annie Power, trained by W P Mullins and ridden by R Walsh set the quickest time of 3:45.10 in the 2016 renewal.
What the expert says...
Andy Powell - Horse Racing Betting Expert - OLBG.com
| Selection | Probability | Odds | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lossiemouth | 20% | 5.00 |
| 2 | Kopek Des Bordes | 20% | 5.00 |
| 3 | Constitution Hill | 20% | 5.00 |
| 4 | The New Lion | 16.7% | 6.00 |
| 5 | State Man | 9.1% | 11.00 |
| 6 | Wodhooh | 6.7% | 15.00 |
| 7 | Anzadam | 5.9% | 17.00 |
| 8 | Brighterdaysahead | 4.8% | 21.00 |
| 9 | Golden Ace | 3.8% | 26.00 |
| 10 | Poniros | 3.8% | 26.00 |
Champion Hurdle Past Winners
Here are the Champion Hurdle past winners for the last 10 renewals. Each row details the year of the race, the horse which won along with the age & weight of the horse. The horse's trainer and the jockey at the time of winning the Champion Hurdle are also displayed, along with the starting price at which the horse was sent off.
| Year | Horse | Info |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 3:56.12 | Golden Ace (GB) 7yo 11-3 25/1 | Lorcan Williams Jeremy Scott (GB) |
| 2024 4:13.88 | State Man (FR) 7yo 11-10 2/5F | Paul Townend W P Mullins (IRE) |
| 2023 3:59.38 | Constitution Hill (GB) 6yo 11-10 4/11F | Nico de Boinville Nicky Henderson (GB) |
| 2022 3:50.13 | Honeysuckle (GB) 8yo 11-3 8/11F | Rachael Blackmore Henry De Bromhead (IRE) |
| 2021 3:54.63 | Honeysuckle (GB) 7yo 11-3 11/10F | Rachael Blackmore Henry De Bromhead (IRE) |
| 2020 4:07.03 | Epatante (FR) 6yo 11-3 2/1F | Barry Geraghty Nicky Henderson (GB) |
| 2019 3:59.07 | Espoir DAllen (FR) 5yo 11-10 16/1 | Mark Walsh Gavin Cromwell (IRE) |
| 2018 4:05.00 | Buveur DAir (FR) 7yo 11-10 4/6F | Barry Geraghty Nicky Henderson (GB) |
| 2017 3:50.90 | Buveur DAir (FR) 6yo 11-10 5/1 | Noel Fehily Nicky Henderson (GB) |
| 2016 3:45.10 | Annie Power (IRE) 8yo 11-3 5/2F | R Walsh W P Mullins (IRE) |
Where have the winning runners come from?
Here are the countries where the winning trainers of the Champion Hurdle have been based:
- IRE: 11 winners with an additional 17 placings from 96 runners
- GB: 9 winners with an additional 21 placings from 128 runners
- FR: 0 winners with an additional 0 placings from 3 runners
- GER: 0 winners with an additional 0 placings from 1 runner
Champion Hurdle Trainer Statistics
The leading trainer in the Champion Hurdle over the last 20 renewals is Nicky Henderson who has won the race six times with those six winners coming from Punjabi (2009), Binocular (2010), Buveur DAir (2017 & 2018), Epatante (2020) and Constitution Hill (2023). Other trainers who have recorded multiple wins in the Champion Hurdle are W P Mullins (5 wins) and Henry De Bromhead (2 wins).
Here are some of the top Champion Hurdle trainer statistics over the last 20 renewals (R = Runners, W = Winners, P = Places including winners, Win LSP is based on 1pt Win and EW LSP is based on 0.5pt Win & 0.5pt Place):
| Trainer | R-W-P | Win | EW |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nicky Henderson | 39-6-17 | +6.03 | +8.48 |
| W P Mullins | 36-5-14 | -22.92 | -13.79 |
| Henry De Bromhead | 8-2-3 | -4.17 | -3.80 |
| Alan King | 10-1-1 | +1.00 | -3.00 |
| Paul Nicholls | 8-1-2 | +4.00 | +0.10 |
| Mrs John Harrington | 5-1-2 | +5.00 | +1.90 |
| C A Murphy | 3-1-2 | -0.25 | -0.07 |
| Jeremy Scott | 2-1-1 | +24.00 | +14.63 |
| Gavin Cromwell | 2-1-2 | +15.00 | +9.10 |
| John G Carr | 2-1-1 | +15.00 | +8.60 |
Champion Hurdle Jockey Statistics
The leading jockey in the Champion Hurdle over the last 20 renewals is Rachael Blackmore who has won the race two times with those two winners coming from Honeysuckle (2021 & 2022).
Here are some of the top Champion Hurdle jockey statistics over the last 20 renewals (R = Runners, W = Winners, P = Places including winners, Win LSP is based on 1pt Win and EW LSP is based on 0.5pt Win & 0.5pt Place):
| Jockey | R-W-P | Win | EW |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rachael Blackmore | 3-2-2 | +0.83 | +0.10 |
| Paul Townend | 14-1-7 | -12.60 | -3.97 |
| Mark Walsh | 6-1-1 | +11.00 | +4.60 |
| Nico de Boinville | 6-1-1 | -4.64 | -4.77 |
| Lorcan Williams | 1-1-1 | +25.00 | +15.63 |
| Sam Twiston-Davies | 7-0-2 | -7.00 | +2.58 |
| Jack Kennedy | 5-0-2 | -5.00 | -0.75 |
| Danny Mullins | 4-0-1 | -4.00 | -1.50 |
| Jonathan Burke | 4-0-0 | -4.00 | -4.00 |
| Mr P W Mullins | 3-0-1 | -3.00 | -2.50 |
2026 Champion Hurdle Trends
Favourites finishing positions (oldest to latest): 1, 6, 14, 3, 10, 1, 3, 1, 4, 1, 1, DSQ, 1, 6, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, F
The percentage shown is the percentage of the total number of runners who fell under that factor. High percentages are less appealing than lower ones as you would expect them to do well.
- 20 / 20 (52%) - Break of 24 - 108 days (Last Win)
- 20 / 20 (52%) - No bigger than 3/1 (LTO)
- 20 / 20 (56%) - Break of 24 - 78 days (Last Place)
- 20 / 20 (64%) - No bigger than 25/1
- 20 / 20 (66%) - Had 1 - 3 wins (180 Days)
- 20 / 20 (70%) - No bigger than 7/2 (Last Win)
- 20 / 20 (73%) - Won within last 3 starts
- 20 / 20 (79%) - Ran in 1 - 14 races (Jockey)
- 20 / 20 (79%) - Not on GD/GF/STD-SLW/STD (Last Win)
- 20 / 20 (79%) - Held an OR of 138+ (Last Win)
- 20 / 20 (81%) - Placed within last 2 starts
- 20 / 20 (82%) - Beaten no more -11½l (LTO)
- 20 / 20 (82%) - Had 5 - 18 wins (Career)
- 20 / 20 (83%) - Had 1 - 4 placings (Season)
- 20 / 20 (87%) - No bigger than 40/1 (Career)
Remember to use the trends listed above along with the Cheltenham racing predictions to see if you can find the winner of the Champion Hurdle. Did you know that we have an OLBG Betting School section on OLBG? It is a place to help you improve your betting experience with articles covering numerous topics.
Are you already a member? If not, then why not? With over £6,000 given away each month in the tipster competition, why not get involved? Remember, It is completely FREE! So, head over to the registration page to sign up today! If you are already a member, then share your thoughts on the Champion Hurdle by adding a tip on the race here.
101 Ways to find Winners in Horse Racing
Champion Hurdle Trend Analysis
✅ The trend factor which had produced 10+ winners and shows the best LSP, an LSP of +19.49 is when runners had 1 place in the past 90 days.
❌ The worst performing factor that has failed to produce a single winner is when runners had 0 places in the past 90 days, when backing these the trend shows a record of 0-76.
The course which has produced the most winners of the Champion Hurdle is Leopardstown, there has been a total number of 7 winners of this race who ran at Leopardstown last time out. The next best course which has produced the second most winners is Kempton, there has been a total number of 4 winners of this race who ran at Kempton last time out.
The race is open to both sexes with the Male runners having produced a total of 15 winners from a total of 213 runners whilst the Female runners have produced 5 winners from a total of 15 runners.
Looking over the past renewals, these are the stallions whose offspring have produced multiple winners of the Champion Hurdle:
- Crillon (2 Wins)
- Montjeu (2 Wins)
- Sulamani (2 Wins)
These are the stallions whose offspring have not produced a winner of the Champion Hurdle despite multiple attempts:
- Beat Hollow (0 Wins from 8 runners)
- Kings Theatre (0 Wins from 6 runners)
- Perugino (0 Wins from 5 runners)
Looking at the winning odds over the last 20 renewals, the biggest-priced winner was Golden Ace in 2025, winning for Jeremy Scott at odds of 25/1 under the guidance of Lorcan Williams. Looking at the runners at the head of the market over the last 20 renewals there have been 11 winning favourites in the race. Remember to use the best racing tipsters along with the information on this page to find you a bet on the 2026 Champion Hurdle.
Route to the Champion Hurdle
Many trainers will target races to use as prep races before coming to the Champion Hurdle, these are the races which the recent winners ran in before coming here:
| Info | Last Race |
|---|---|
| 2025 - Golden Ace Wincanton - 1st of 4 (6/5) | BetMGM Kingwell Hurdle |
| 2024 - State Man Leopardstown - 1st of 4 (2/5) | Irish Champion Hurdle |
| 2023 - Constitution Hill Kempton - 1st of 5 (1/6) | Christmas Hurdle |
| 2022 - Honeysuckle Leopardstown - 1st of 5 (1/5) | Irish Champion Hurdle |
| 2021 - Honeysuckle Leopardstown - 1st of 6 (10/11) | Irish Champion Hurdle |
| 2020 - Epatante Kempton - 1st of 10 (2/1) | Christmas Hurdle |
| 2019 - Espoir DAllen Naas - 1st of 5 (4/9) | Limestone Lad Hurdle |
| 2018 - Buveur DAir Sandown - 1st of 3 (1/16) | Betfred "Supports Jack Berry House" Contenders Hurdle |
| 2017 - Buveur DAir Sandown - 1st of 4 (1/4) | Betfred "Follow Us On Twitter" Contenders Hurdle |
| 2016 - Annie Power Punchestown - 1st of 3 (1/20) | punchestown.com Mares Hurdle |
Schedule for Tuesday at the Cheltenham Festival
Prepare for the ROAR of the Cheltenham Festival on the opening day when the tape goes up for the Supreme Novices Hurdle, the feature on Tuesday is the Champion Hurdle.
| Race | Last Winner | Info |
|---|---|---|
| 13:20 Cheltenham Supreme Novices Hurdle | Kopek Des Bordes (FR) 5yo - 4/6 | W P Mullins Paul Townend |
| 14:00 Cheltenham Arkle Challenge Trophy | Jango Baie (FR) 6yo - 5/1 | Nicky Henderson Nico de Boinville |
| 14:40 Cheltenham Ultima Handicap Chase | Myretown (IRE) 8yo - 13/2 | Lucinda Russell Patrick Wadge |
| 15:20 Cheltenham Close Brothers Mares Hurdle | Lossiemouth (FR) 6yo - 4/6 | W P Mullins Paul Townend |
| 16:00 Cheltenham Champion Hurdle | Golden Ace (GB) 7yo - 25/1 | Jeremy Scott Lorcan Williams |
| 16:40 Cheltenham Fred Winter Juvenile Handicap Hurdle | Puturhandstogether (IRE) 4yo - 17/2 | Joseph Patrick O'Brien Mark Walsh |
| 17:20 Cheltenham National Hunt Chase Challenge Cup | Haiti Couleurs (FR) 8yo - 7/2 | Rebecca Curtis Ben Jones |
Schedule for Wednesday at the Cheltenham Festival
The dust has settled on the opening day of the Cheltenham Festival and now on to day two. The feature on the second day is the Queen Mother Champion Chase. We also have the cross country scheduled on Wednesday, a race like Marmite, some love it and some don't!
| Race | Last Winner | Info |
|---|---|---|
| 13:20 Cheltenham Turners Novices Hurdle | The New Lion (GB) 6yo - 3/1 | Dan Skelton Harry Skelton |
| 14:00 Cheltenham Brown Advisory Novices Chase | Lecky Watson (IRE) 7yo - 20/1 | W P Mullins Sean O'Keeffe |
| 14:40 Cheltenham Coral Cup | Jimmy Du Seuil (FR) 6yo - 16/1 | W P Mullins Danny Mullins |
| 15:20 Cheltenham Cross Country Chase | Stumptown (IRE) 8yo - 5/2 | Gavin Cromwell Keith Donoghue |
| 16:00 Cheltenham Queen Mother Champion Chase | Marine Nationale (IRE) 8yo - 5/1 | Barry Connell Sean Flanagan |
| 16:40 Cheltenham Johnny Henderson Grand Annual | Jazzy Matty (FR) 6yo - 15/2 | Cian Collins Danny Gilligan |
| 17:20 Cheltenham Champion Bumper | Bambino Fever (IRE) 5yo - 4/1 | W P Mullins Miss J Townend |
Schedule for Thursday at the Cheltenham Festival
Halfway through the festival and onto day three where the Stayers Hurdle is the feature race. A hurdle race to test the stamina and see how can last best up the Cheltenham hill.
| Race | Last Winner | Info |
|---|---|---|
| 13:20 Cheltenham Mares Novices Hurdle | Air Of Entitlement (IRE) 6yo - 16/1 | Henry De Bromhead Rachael Blackmore |
| 14:00 Cheltenham Novices Limited Handicap Chase | Caldwell Potter (FR) 7yo - 7/1 | Paul Nicholls Harry Cobden |
| 14:40 Cheltenham Pertemps Network Final | Doddiethegreat (IRE) 9yo - 25/1 | Nicky Henderson Brian Hughes |
| 15:20 Cheltenham Ryanair Chase | Fact To File (FR) 8yo - 6/4 | W P Mullins Mark Walsh |
| 16:00 Cheltenham Stayers Hurdle | Bob Olinger (IRE) 10yo - 8/1 | Henry De Bromhead Rachael Blackmore |
| 16:40 Cheltenham Festival Plate | Jagwar (FR) 6yo - 3/1 | Oliver Greenall & Josh Guerriero Jonjo O'Neill Jr |
| 17:20 Cheltenham Fulke Walwyn Kim Muir Challenge Cup | Daily Present (IRE) 8yo - 12/1 | Paul Nolan Mr B T Stone |
Schedule for Friday at the Cheltenham Festival
The final day of the festival and feature race that we have all been waiting for, the Cheltenham Gold Cup in which the Irish have been fairly dominant in recent years.
| Race | Last Winner | Info |
|---|---|---|
| 13:20 Cheltenham Triumph Hurdle | Poniros (GB) 4yo - 100/1 | W P Mullins Jonjo O'Neill Jr |
| 14:00 Cheltenham County Handicap Hurdle | Kargese (FR) 5yo - 3/1 | W P Mullins Paul Townend |
| 14:40 Cheltenham Mrs Paddy Power Mares Chase | Dinoblue (FR) 8yo - 6/4 | W P Mullins Mark Walsh |
| 15:20 Cheltenham Albert Bartlett Novices Hurdle | Jasmin De Vaux (FR) 6yo - 6/1 | W P Mullins Paul Townend |
| 16:00 Cheltenham Cheltenham Gold Cup | Inothewayurthinkin (IRE) 7yo - 15/2 | Gavin Cromwell Mark Walsh |
| 16:40 Cheltenham Festival Hunters Chase | Wonderwall (IRE) 9yo - 28/1 | S Curling Mr R James |
| 17:20 Cheltenham Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys Handicap Hurdle | Wodhooh (FR) 5yo - 9/2 | Gordon Elliott Danny Gilligan |
Article Contributor Information
We are blessed with an excellent team of specialists and experts at OLBG. Contributing to creating and maintaining this Champion Hurdle Preview are at hand, Andy and James. They both work on the Horse racing tips team team looking after the tipsters and managing the tips settlement, whilst also creating and managing all of the horse racing event previews for National Hunt Racing.
James Banting
Tipster Competition Assistant
Andy Powell
Content Editor
