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.
2025 Select Hurdle Preview
Scheduled to take place in April of each year at the Sandown racecourse is the Select Hurdle, a Grade 2 race that is run on the Jump Finale day.
The race was upgraded from Listed to Grade 2 in 2017, three years after being established in 2014. It's run over a trip of two miles, and five and a half furlongs during which a total of 11 hurdles are jumped and is currently sponsored by bet365.
Select Hurdle Information:
If you are interested in other predictions at Sandown then head over to the Sandown tips page to see which runners are being supported by the OLBG racing tipsters and also compare those predictions to the runners that make the trend shortlist when added below. You may also be interested in other preview blogs that we have packed full of information, head down to the Other Principal Races at Sandown Racecourse section for links to these.
How competitive is the Select Hurdle market? When looking at the over-rounds for the last 10 renewals, the most competitive market was in 2022 when the race had an over-round of 109%. The race in 2017 was a race that was most in the bookie's favour with an over-round of 115%, whilst on average over the last 10 renewals of the Select Hurdle, the over-round has been 112%, which means the bookie expects to pay out £100 for every £112 which is bet.
Select Hurdle Trends:
Looking at the future form, is the winner worth following next time out? From the past 10 if you had followed the winner of the Select Hurdle next time out then you would have backed a total of 1 winner. Backing all 8 runners who have been out since to win at SP next time out, would have returned an LSP of -6.17. Ahead of the 2025 Select Hurdle why not head over to the racing predictions for tips on other races today?
The runner that holds the record over the past 10 renewals for the slowest time in the race was set in the 2023 renewal when Knappers Hill from Paul Nicholls under the guidance of Bryony Frost, won in a time of 5:40.00, whilst at the other end of the spectrum, Polly Peachum, trained by Nicky Henderson and ridden by David Bass set the quickest time of 5:15.75 in the 2015 renewal.
These are the top three quickest-run Select Hurdle over the last 10 renewals:
- Polly Peachum (5:15.75) in 2015
- Younevercall (5:16.30) in 2019
- LAmi Serge (5:20.50) in 2017
Select Hurdle Past Winners
Here are the Select 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 trainer of the horse at the time of winning the Select Hurdle as well as the jockey is also displayed along with the starting price the horse was sent off.
| Year | Horse | Info |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 5:25.00 | Impaire Et Passe (FR) 6yo 11-10 4/5F | Paul Townend W P Mullins (IRE) |
| 2023 5:40.00 | Knappers Hill (IRE) 7yo 11-10 11/2 | Bryony Frost Paul Nicholls (GB) |
| 2022 5:26.20 | McFabulous (IRE) 8yo 11-10 4/1 | Lorcan Williams Paul Nicholls (GB) |
| 2021 5:23.50 | Younevercall (IRE) 10yo 11-0 5/2F | David Bass Kim Bailey (GB) |
| 2019 5:16.30 | Younevercall (IRE) 8yo 11-0 9/4F | David Bass Kim Bailey (GB) |
| 2018 5:30.50 | Call Me Lord (FR) 5yo 11-0 6/4F | Nico de Boinville Nicky Henderson (GB) |
| 2017 5:20.50 | LAmi Serge (IRE) 7yo 11-0 7/2 | Daryl Jacob Nicky Henderson (GB) |
| 2016 5:22.70 | Ptit Zig (FR) 7yo 11-0 7/4F | Sam Twiston-Davies Paul Nicholls (GB) |
| 2015 5:15.75 | Polly Peachum (IRE) 7yo 10-11 9/4F | David Bass Nicky Henderson (GB) |
| 2014 5:24.70 | Southfield Theatre (IRE) 6yo 11-0 15/8F | Sam Twiston-Davies Paul Nicholls (GB) |
Where have the winning runners come from?
Here are the countries where the winning trainers of the Select Hurdle have been based:
- GB: 9 winners with an additional 10 placings from 57 runners
- IRE: 1 winner with an additional 1 placing from 4 runners
Select Hurdle Trainer Statistics
The leading trainer in the Select Hurdle over the last 10 renewals is Paul Nicholls who has won the race four times with those four winners coming from Southfield Theatre (2014), Ptit Zig (2016), McFabulous (2022) and Knappers Hill (2023). Other trainers who have recorded multiple wins in the Select Hurdle are Nicky Henderson (3 wins) and Kim Bailey (2 wins).
Here are some of the top Select Hurdle trainer statistics over the last 10 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paul Nicholls | 14-4-6 | +3.13 | -0.93 |
| Nicky Henderson | 16-3-6 | -5.75 | -3.69 |
| Kim Bailey | 2-2-2 | +4.75 | +2.97 |
| W P Mullins | 2-1-2 | -0.20 | +0.58 |
| Gary Moore | 4-0-1 | -4.00 | -3.06 |
| Paul Webber | 2-0-1 | -2.00 | +0.00 |
| Nigel Twiston-Davies | 2-0-0 | -2.00 | -2.00 |
| Alan King | 2-0-0 | -2.00 | -2.00 |
| Neil King | 1-0-1 | -1.00 | +0.50 |
| Dan Skelton | 1-0-1 | -1.00 | +0.20 |
Select Hurdle Jockey Statistics
The leading jockey in the Select Hurdle over the last 10 renewals is David Bass who has won the race three times with those three winners coming from Polly Peachum (2015) and Younevercall (2019 & 2021). The only other jockey to have recorded multiple wins in the Select Hurdle is Sam Twiston-Davies (2 wins).
Here are some of the top Select Hurdle jockey statistics over the last 10 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| David Bass | 3-3-3 | +7.00 | +4.38 |
| Sam Twiston-Davies | 5-2-2 | +0.63 | -0.73 |
| Nico de Boinville | 6-1-3 | -3.50 | -1.12 |
| Daryl Jacob | 4-1-1 | +0.50 | +0.10 |
| Bryony Frost | 1-1-1 | +5.50 | +3.44 |
| Lorcan Williams | 1-1-1 | +4.00 | +0.00 |
| Paul Townend | 1-1-1 | +0.80 | +0.48 |
| Harry Cobden | 4-0-0 | -4.00 | -3.00 |
| Rex Dingle | 2-0-1 | -2.00 | +0.00 |
| Harry Skelton | 2-0-1 | -2.00 | -0.80 |
2025 Select Hurdle Trends
Favourites finishing positions (oldest to latest): 1, 1, 1, 4, (1, 3), 1, 1, 4, 3, 1
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.
- 10 / 10 (54%) - Made 8 - 15 starts (Hurdle)
- 10 / 10 (57%) - No bigger than 11/2
- 10 / 10 (59%) - Achieved an RPR of 149+ (Season)
- 10 / 10 (62%) - Achieved an RPR of 142+ (Class)
- 10 / 10 (64%) - Had 5 - 9 placings (Hurdle)
- 10 / 10 (67%) - Held an OR of 149+
- 10 / 10 (67%) - Within the first 4 of the market
- 10 / 10 (67%) - Furthest Won 2m2f - 2m7f
- 10 / 10 (69%) - Made 8 - 23 starts (Career)
- 10 / 10 (75%) - Ran over 1m4½f - 2m2f (Debut)
- 10 / 10 (75%) - Made 3 - 6 starts (1 Year)
- 10 / 10 (77%) - No bigger than 6/1 (Last Win)
- 10 / 10 (77%) - Had 1 - 3 placings (180 Days)
- 10 / 10 (77%) - Achieved a TS of 71+ (LTO)
- 10 / 10 (79%) - Made 3 - 6 starts (Season)
Remember to use the trends listed above along with the Sandown racing predictions to see if you can find the winner of the Select Hurdle. How well do you know your horse racing? Are there certain types of races that you are unsure of? Why not take a look at this Types Of Horse Race article to familiarise yourself with the different types of racing, that is just one of many helpful horse racing articles in the OLBG Betting School.
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 Select Hurdle by adding a tip on the race here.
Select Hurdle Trend Analysis
The trend factor which had produced 5+ winners and shows the best LSP, an LSP of +8.93 is when runners were 1st in the betting market. The worst performing factor that has failed to produce a single winner is when runners carried 158lbs, when backing these the trend shows a record of 0-17.
The course which has produced the most winners of the Select Hurdle is Cheltenham, there has been a total number of 4 winners of this race who ran at Cheltenham last time out.
The race is open to both sexes with the Male runners having produced a total of 9 winners from a total of 54 runners whilst the Female runners have produced 1 winner from a total of 7 runners.
Looking over the past renewals, these are the stallions whose offspring have produced multiple winners of the Select Hurdle:
- Kings Theatre (2 Wins)
- Yeats (2 Wins)
Looking at the winning odds over the last 10 renewals, the biggest-priced winner was Knappers Hill in 2023, winning for Paul Nicholls at odds of 11/2 under the guidance of Bryony Frost. Looking at the runners at the head of the market over the last 10 renewals there have been 7 winning favourites in the race. Before placing your bet on the 2025 Select Hurdle head over to see which other runners today are being backed by the best racing tipsters today.
Other Principal races at Sandown racecourse
Here are some other notable races at the Sandown racecourse throughout the racing season that you may be interested in.
Races in January
Races in February
Races in March
Races in April (Jump Finale)
Races in April (Classic Trial Day)
Races in July
Races in December
Article Contributor Information
We are blessed with an excellent team of specialists and experts at OLBG. Contributing to creating and maintaining this Select Hurdle Preview are at hand, Andy and Darren. 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.
Darren Brett
Tipster Competition Manager
Andy Powell
Content Editor
