Champion Hurdle

The feature race on the first day of the Cheltenham Festival is undoubtedly the Champion Hurdle, a grade one event run over two miles and a half a furlong.

When looking at results over the last 10 years it is impossible to ignore the fact that the Irish have had a stranglehold on the race they have won it seven times since 1998 and that includes the three times champion of Aiden O'Brien who trained Istabraq. O'Brien won it three times in the late 1990's between the years 1998 and 2000 making him a Cheltenham legend.

Another Irish horse that went onto win it in 2004 and 2005 was Hardy Eustace a gutsy performer who was at his best up the Cheltenham Hill seeing off his other Irish rivals including Brave Inca Harchibald and Macs Joy on more than one occasion.

Brave Inca got his revenge in 2006. The last Irish winner was Sublimity in 2007 while the most recent winner was of course Binocular who stormed up the hill to claim the win for Nicky Henderson and connections.

Champion Hurdle Odds

The Odds of the 2012 Champion Hurdle suggest that the race this year is going to be one of the most competitive in years with Binocular the one to beat at this stage following his win last season. You can keep in touch with all the changes in the markets in the build up to the race by way of our comprehensive Champion Hurdle Odds Comparison service.

Champion Hurdle Form and Race Card

The Champion Hurdle form generally follows the main Champion Hurdle trials as we go through the season. The Irish Champion Hurdle run at Leopardstown is always a good trial with so many top Irish hurdlers battling it out for the big prize money on offer over on that side of the water. Also the Champion Hurdle Race Card will be a vital part of our preview of the 2012 Champion Hurdle and it will be available for punters on race day.

Champion Hurdle Results

The previous winners of the Champion Hurdle since the year 2002 have been

2011 Hurricane Fly 7 W Mullins 11/4f
2010 Binocular 6 N Henderson 9/1
2009 Punjabi N Henderson 22/1
2008 Katchit A King 10/1
2007 Sublimity John G Carr 16/1
2006 Brave Inca C Murphy 7/4F
2005 Hardy Eustace D Hughes 7/1F
2004 Hardy Eustace D Hughes 33/1
2003 Rooster Booster P Hobbs 9/2
2002 Hors La Loi III J Fanshawe 10/1

We put up the Champion Hurdle results straight after the race along with a race review featuring how the race was run and won

You can also find our Champion Hurdle tip on this site and this will be available as the festival draws near.

Cheltenham Festival - Betting Tips