The Champion Hurdle is the feature race on day one of the Cheltenham Festival and takes place at 4pm on Tuesday of the meeting.
Betting on the Champion Hurdle
The Champion Hurdle features the best hurdlers in Great Britain and Ireland and ranks second only to the Cheltenham Gold Cup during Festival week. Ante-post odds are available all-year-round and it is one of the top betting races of the week. The market leader for 2026 is Constitution Hill who would become the first Champion Hurdler to regain the trophy since Hurricane Fly in 2013.
Favourites have a very good record in the Champion Hurdle in recent years, winning nine of the last 13 renewals. There have been the occasional shock results in this race, most recently with Punjabi at 22-1 in 2009 and Espoir D’Allen at 16-1 in 2019. The longest priced winners in the history of the race were Kirriemuir (1965) and Beech Road (1989), both returning at 50-1.
Champion Hurdle News
After a stunning and unpredictable renewal in 2025, the field for the 2026 running could contain multiple previous winners if Constitution Hill, State Man and Golden Ace are aimed at the race.