The Championship Race looks wide open, with Epatante leading the betting
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The Champion Hurdle is the feature race on day one of the Cheltenham Festival and it looks a wide-open encounter with none of the runners setting the world alight this season.
The winner of the 2017 and 2018 renewals, Buveur D’air, will miss this year’s edition after sustaining an injury in the Fighting Fifth at Newcastle.
Last year’s shock winner, Espoir D’Allen, sadly passed away, having looked to have a great chance at another tilt this year.
Ante-post favourite up until the start of this season Klassical Dream and stablemate Saldier have both been ruled out through injury, which means Willie Mullins is set to run Cilaos Emery after winning on his hurdling return at Gowran Park.
All of this points towards a really underwhelming Champion Hurdle this year. There are a real lack of star performances lining up here, but that doesn’t mean it is not an intriguing race.
Nicky Henderson will be aiming to add to his seven Champion Hurdle triumphs already and he certainly has a strong hand again. He has no less than five runners set to line up for him here.
His leading chance and the favourite for the race, Epatante, (7/2) will be looking to make amends after flopping in the Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle last year. Henderson has put that down to a bad reaction to a flu jab, but it must be a concern for a horse at the top of the market.
Nonetheless, she hasn’t put a foot wrong this year and after a strong showing in the Christmas Hurdle on Boxing Day, she deservedly shot to the front of the betting.
You can’t fault her slick jumping, however. All her form is on flat tracks. Will she be able to cope with the Cheltenham test? It is quite disappointing that a horse rated 159 heads the betting, but she may yet run to a higher level than that in the future.
Pentland Hills has disappointed twice so far this season but you can probably excuse both defeats. The heavy ground at Haydock was far from ideal for the Triumph Hurdle winner. In fact, I’m surprised he even ran given the conditions on the day.
The Champion Hurdle will suit him far better and at his best, he has to have every chance given the nature of this renewal, but even he looks quite a short price (5/1) for what he has shown us this season.
Call Me Lord (33/1), Fusil Raffles and Verdana Blue make up the quintet of Henderson’s likely runners. The latter is the best price of 33/1. Fifth in last year’s renewal, the eight-year-old has only been seen once this season when a respectable fourth in the Christmas Hurdle. That ground will have been too soft for her and probably was blowing some cobwebs away too.
Should the ground not be too soft on the first day, then surely Verdana Blue has a great chance. The mare always runs a race at Cheltenham and on good ground is a top-class performer. The mares’ allowance will be handy too. One to keep a keen eye on should the weather dry up in the build-up to the Festival.
Fusil Raffles (16/1) didn’t exactly give off the impression of a Champion Hurdler winner when battling off Grand Sancy at Wincanton and then was pulled up after a disappointing effort in the Christmas Hurdle.
Cilaos Emery (8/1) is to be supplemented for the race after making a winning return to hurdling at Gowran Park last weekend. He has not raced over hurdles in over two years but you can’t discount Willie Mullins’ eight-year-old. He is a proven top-level performer and will be Mullins’ main contender now after injuries to Klassical Dream and Saldier.
Sharjah (14/1) is another of Mullins' but he was poor in the Irish Champion Hurdle. However, a drift just before the race was his writing on the wall. Bought down in the race last year, he has unfinished business but I would be doubtful he was the class to win a Champion Hurdle. Mullins supplementing Cilaos Emery suggests he may think similarly.
Darver Star (16/1) has incredibly gone from a 104 rated horse to 152 in a year. He flew home late in the Irish Champion Hurdle and almost reeled in Honeysuckle. His third behind Envoi Allen and Abacadabras in the Royal Bond stacks up very well. His price has been trimmed since his second at Leopardstown and I’m not sure how much value is there anymore. He is extremely consistent and certainly has place claims but you would be concerned by the rest of the runners if Gavin Cromwell’s eight-year-old could win here.
One potential runner who is interesting at a massive price is Hughie Morrison’s Not So Sleepy. The eight-year-old was seriously impressive when he made all in the Betfair Exchange Trophy at Ascot in December. He was given a 17lb hike for that effort but plenty thought there was still more to come. The ridiculous standing start in the Betfair Hurdle ruined any chance he had and a line can be put through that race. If he turns up here, given it is such a poor year, who is to say he cannot put in a bold showing from the front. His sire is Beat Hollow whose offspring have a very good record at the Festival. A smaller field should suit Not So Sleepy's running style too. At 50/1, in such a weak renewal, he is worth chancing.
It would be far from a surprise if a big priced winner can dot up here, and two against the field that are worth keeping an eye on are Verdana Blue and Not So Sleepy. Not So Sleepy could still potentially go down a handicap route, but it sounds like connections want to go here. Verdana Blue wouldn’t be a bet if the ground is very soft, so may worth waiting until closer to the day. Should it come up good to soft, however, Verdana Blue could have a massive say in proceedings and looks a cracking each-way bet. Not So Sleepy could be a bit all or nothing, and whilst speculative, he has the potential to burn them all from the front.
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