The Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle is the last race contested at the Cheltenham Festival. Run since 2009, the race is run in the name of the legendary former trainer and has unearthed stars both equine and human down the years.
Matty Sutcliffe’s Martin Pipe Tips
Awaiting Tips…
Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle Bookmaker Odds – Race 7, Friday 13th March 5:20
The Martin Pipe picture will become much clearer ahead of the 2026 Cheltenham Festival, with handicap entries still yet to be announced.
All About The Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys Handicap Hurdle in 2026
Run over an extended 2m4f on Cheltenham’s New Course, the Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Hurdle has been a regular staple in the Cheltenham Festival race roster since its inception back in 2009.
The race is now the getting out stakes of the entire Festival, and with it remaining exclusive to claiming Jockeys, rider bookings are crucial.
It’s set to have a hugely competitive field in the 2026 Martin Pipe and it’s sure to be a fascinating betting contest for punters as they look to end the Cheltenham Festival on a winning note.
Qualifications/Trends
The Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle is open to horses aged four or older. The race is a handicap and during the entirety of its extended 2m4f trip nine hurdles are set to be jumped.
It tends to attract novice hurdlers who were not quite good enough to contest the Supreme, Ballymore or Albert Bartlett Novice Hurdles. The Martin Pipe has a competitive nature and there is often very little separating the field of 20+ runners, with just 12lb separating the top and bottom weights in 2022, for example.
5yo and 6yos have tended to dominate in the race down the years, winning 8 of the last 10 renewals. The remaining races have gone the way of 7yos, albeit the first of those, Blow By Blow, was still a novice.
In terms of trainers, this is yet another race that Willie Mullins has farmed down the years, landing four renewals. Interestingly, all of the four horses that took the race for Mullins (Sir Des Champs 2011, Don Poli 2014, Killultagh Vic 2015, Galopin Des Champs 2021) went on to land Grade 1 honours, so it’s fair to say that the trainer targets this with some of his better hurdlers.
That said, Gordon Elliott has been more of a man to follow in the last decade of the race. His Cullentra yard have landed three victories in that time to Mullins’ two, with Better Days Ahead scoring last season.
Despite the success of big yards, however, it hasn’t traditionally been a race in which favourites have enjoyed a strong record, with just one (Sir Des Champs, 9/2F, 2011) going in in the race’s history. Ten renewals of the Martin Pipe have gone to horses priced at double-figure odds, most recently in 2022 when Banbridge defied odds of 12/1, though he would prove another high class winner of the race, going on to win the 2024 King George VI Chase.
2026 Martin Pipe Handicap Hurdle Prize Money
Last year’s connections of 2025 winner Wodhooh took home just over £39,000 of the £73,000 prize pot, with prize money going all the way down to the sixth-placed horse
The prize pot for the 2026 renewal is £75,000.
Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys Handicap Hurdle History
The Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle is named after a certain Martin Pipe, one of the most successful trainers in Jumps racing history.
Martin Pipe began training in 1974 and went on to be Champion Jumps Trainer an incredible 15 times. He enjoyed notable success at the Cheltenham Festival, ending his career on a total of 34 Festival winners, landing two Champion Hurdles.
The Pipe stable is also responsible for not only boosting equine talent, but human also. This likes of AP McCoy and Richard Dunwoody spent part of their careers riding for the stable, and the statement not only applies to jockeys, with future training supremos Gordon Elliott and David Pipe also learning from the workings of Martin Pipe.
As the majority of the Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys Handicap Hurdle winners were novices, many go on to embark on chasing careers the following season.
This has resulted in no horses managing to land more than one Martin Pipe since the race’s inception. The contest has proven a fine springboard for the careers of some future Jumps superstars, however. 2011 winner Sir Des Champs and 2014 winner Don Poli both went on to land novice chases at the following year’s Festival, and ultimately run in the Cheltenham Gold Cup, while 2021 hero Galopin Des Champs then stormed to victory in the 2023 and 2024 Cheltenham Gold Cups to be the greatest winner of the Martin Pipe.
With this race exclusive to conditional jockeys, and a large majority deciding to go professional once riding out their claim, it is perhaps no surprise that no jockey has managed to win the race more than once. The race has proven a good guide for unearthing riding talent though, with the likes of Jonjo O’Neill Jr, JJ Slevin and Donagh Meyler all amongst its recent roll of honour.
In terms of training success, Willie Mullins four winners Sir Des Champs (2011), Don Poli (2014), Killultagh Vic (2015) and Galopin Des Champs (2021) make him the most successful trainer in the race’s history.
Winners since 2009
| Year | Horse | Jockey | Trainer | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Andytown | Felix de Giles | Nicky Henderson | 25/1 |
| 2010 | Pause And Clause | Johnny Farrelly | Emma Lavelle | 14/1 |
| 2011 | Sir Des Champs | Emmet Mullins | Willie Mullins | 9/2F |
| 2012 | Attaglance | Harry Haynes | Malcolm Jefferson | 20/1 |
| 2013 | Salubrious | Harry Derham | Paul Nicholls | 16/1 |
| 2014 | Don Poli | Mikey Fogarty | Willie Mullins | 12/1 |
| 2015 | Killultagh Vic | Luke Dempsey | Willie Mullins | 7/1 |
| 2016 | Ibis Du Rheu | Jack Sherwood | Paul Nicholls | 14/1 |
| 2017 | Champagne Classic | J J Slevin | Gordon Elliott | 12/1 |
| 2018 | Blow By Blow | Donagh Meyler | Gordon Elliott | 11/1 |
| 2019 | Early Doors | Jonjo O’Neill Jr | Joseph O’Brien | 5/1 |
| 2020 | Indefatigable | Rex Dingle | Paul Webber | 25/1 |
| 2021 | Galopin Des Champs | Sean O’Keeffe | Willie Mullins | 8/1 |
| 2022 | Banbridge | Mark McDonagh | Joseph Patrick O’Brien | 12/1 |
| 2023 | Iroko | Aidan Kelly | Oliver Greenall & Josh Guerriero | 6/1 |
| 2024 | Better Days Ahead | Danny Gilligan | Gordon Elliott | 5/1 |
| 2025 | Wodhooh | Danny Gilligan | Gordon Elliott | 9/2 |
Cheltenham Festival Racing Schedule