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2026 Bristol Novices' Hurdle Preview
Registered as the Bristol Novices' Hurdle, the race is currently run as the Albert Bartlett Novices' Hurdle on the Saturday of The Christmas Meeting at Cheltenham in December.
This Grade 2 is open to novice hurdlers who are aged four or older and is contested over a distance just shy of three miles, during which a total of twelve hurdles will be faced.
Bristol Novices' Hurdle Information:
- Bristol Novices' Hurdle Past Winners
- Bristol Novices' Hurdle Trainer Statistics
- Bristol Novices' Hurdle Jockey Statistics
Our dedicated Cheltenham tips page will not only bring you predictions from the OLBG racing tipsters for the upcoming card that includes the Bristol Novices' Hurdle, but will also have predictions for each meeting at Cheltenham throughout the season, so be sure to head over there. You may also be interested in other preview blogs that we have packed full of information. Head down to the Other Principal Races at Cheltenham Racecourse section for links to these.
Best Horse Racing Betting Sites 2025
How competitive is the Bristol Novices' Hurdle market? When looking at the over-rounds for the last 20 renewals, the most competitive market was in 2014 when the race had an over-round of 108%. The race in 2004 was a race that was most in the bookie's favour with an over-round of 117%, whilst on average over the last 20 renewals of the Bristol Novices' Hurdle, the over-round has been 113%, which means the bookie expects to pay out ÂŁ100 for every ÂŁ113 which is bet.
Below you will find the 2026 Bristol Novices' Hurdle Trends. See which patterns have occurred over the recent renewals that you may be able to use for the next renewal. We also have a section that looks at the Bristol Novices' Hurdle Trend Analysis.
These are the top three quickest-run Bristol Novices' Hurdle races over the last 20 renewals:
- Black Jack Ketchum (5:56.30) in 2005
- Deireadh Re (5:57.17) in 2011
- Kings Palace (5:57.31) in 2013
Looking at the future form, is the winner worth following next time out? Over the past 20 renewals, if you had followed the winner of the Bristol Novices' Hurdle next time out, then you would have backed a total of 7 winners. Backing all 19 runners who have been out since their win at SP next time out would have returned an LSP of +6.75. Before placing your bet on the 2026 Bristol Novices' Hurdle, see which other runners today are being backed on the racing predictions page.
When looking over the past 20 renewals, a time of 5:56.30 was set by Black Jack Ketchum in 2005, trained by Jonjo O'Neill and ridden by A P McCoy, which is the quickest time over that period. The slowest winning time was set in 2012 when Coneygree won in a time of 6:40.00 for trainer Mark Bradstock, who booked Mattie Batchelor in the saddle.
Bristol Novices' Hurdle Past Winners
Here are the Bristol Novices' 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 horse's trainer and the jockey at the time of winning the Bristol Novices' Hurdle are also displayed, along with the starting price at which the horse was sent off.
Race Notes: Abandoned in 2022 due to frozen ground.
| Year | Horse | Info |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 6:01.69 | Carlenrig (IRE) 5yo 11-0 4/1 | Harry Skelton Dan Skelton (GB) |
| 2024 5:58.57 | Jet Blue (FR) 5yo 11-5 9/2 | James Reveley D Cottin (FR) |
| 2023 6:01.20 | Shanagh Bob (IRE) 5yo 11-0 15/8F | Nico de Boinville Nicky Henderson (GB) |
| 2021 6:02.94 | Blazing Khal (IRE) 5yo 11-3 1/1F | Donal McInerney C Byrnes (IRE) |
| 2020 6:13.06 | Make Good (IRE) 5yo 10-12 12/1 | Richard Johnson John C McConnell (IRE) |
| 2019 6:18.90 | Redford Road (GB) 5yo 10-12 14/1 | Jamie Bargary Nigel Twiston-Davies (GB) |
| 2018 6:12.00 | Rockpoint (GB) 5yo 10-12 11/2 | Tom Scudamore Colin Tizzard (GB) |
| 2017 6:00.40 | Kilbricken Storm (IRE) 6yo 10-12 3/1 | Harry Cobden Colin Tizzard (GB) |
| 2016 6:05.60 | Wholestone (IRE) 5yo 11-5 13/8F | Daryl Jacob Nigel Twiston-Davies (GB) |
| 2015 6:04.40 | Unowhatimeanharry (GB) 7yo 11-4 11/10F | Noel Fehily Harry Fry (GB) |
Where have the winning runners come from?
Here are the countries where the winning trainers of the Bristol Novices' Hurdle have been based:
- GB: 17 winners with an additional 27 placings from 136 runners
- IRE: 2 winners with an additional 1 placing from 7 runners
- FR: 1 winner with an additional 0 placings from 2 runners
2025 Bristol Novices' Hurdle Replay
Bristol Novices' Hurdle Trainer Statistics
The leading trainer in the Bristol Novices' Hurdle over the last 20 renewals is Nigel Twiston-Davies, who has won the race three times, with those three winners coming from Blaklion (2014), Wholestone (2016) and Redford Road (2019). The only other trainer to have recorded multiple wins in the Bristol Novices' Hurdle is Nicky Henderson (2 wins).
Here are some of the top Bristol Novices' Hurdle trainer statistics over the last 20 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nigel Twiston-Davies | 14-3-4 | +6.88 | +2.53 |
| Nicky Henderson | 6-2-2 | +0.88 | -1.07 |
| Paul Nicholls | 12-1-5 | -9.00 | -4.97 |
| Dan Skelton | 8-1-1 | -3.00 | -4.50 |
| Alan King | 4-1-2 | +1.00 | +1.10 |
| Tom George | 3-1-1 | -1.20 | -1.52 |
| Jonjo O'Neill | 3-1-1 | -1.33 | -1.58 |
| John C McConnell | 2-1-2 | +11.00 | +7.80 |
| Harry Fry | 2-1-1 | +0.10 | -0.31 |
| C Byrnes | 2-1-1 | +0.00 | -0.37 |
Bristol Novices' Hurdle Jockey Statistics
Here are some of the top Bristol Novices' Hurdle jockey statistics over the last 20 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harry Skelton | 8-1-1 | -3.00 | -4.50 |
| Harry Cobden | 3-1-2 | +1.00 | -1.25 |
| Nico de Boinville | 2-1-1 | +0.88 | +0.13 |
| Jamie Bargary | 1-1-1 | +14.00 | +8.40 |
| James Reveley | 1-1-1 | +4.50 | +2.81 |
| Mattie Batchelor | 1-1-1 | +1.10 | +0.69 |
| Donal McInerney | 1-1-1 | +1.00 | +0.63 |
| Sam Twiston-Davies | 7-0-1 | -7.00 | -5.30 |
| Brendan Powell | 3-0-2 | -3.00 | +1.69 |
| Adam Wedge | 3-0-1 | -3.00 | +0.80 |
2026 Bristol Novices' Hurdle Trends
Favourites finishing positions (oldest to latest): 1, 1, 2, 3, 1, (1, 4, 7), (1, 2), 1, 1, 3, 1, 1, 2, 6, 2, 5, 1, 1, 5, 3
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.
- 20 / 20 (70%) - Break of 15 - 56 days (Last Place)
- 20 / 20 (77%) - No bigger than 16/1
- 20 / 20 (77%) - Beaten no more -4½l (LTO)
- 20 / 20 (77%) - No bigger than 8/1 (LTO)
- 20 / 20 (79%) - Achieved an RPR of 112+ (LTO)
- 20 / 20 (79%) - Placed within last 1 starts
- 20 / 20 (81%) - Off a break of 15 - 56 days
- 20 / 20 (81%) - Had 1 - 4 placings (Season)
- 20 / 20 (82%) - Achieved an RPR of 112+ (Season)
- 20 / 20 (82%) - In a field of 6 - 17 (Debut)
- 20 / 20 (86%) - Furthest Placed 2m½f - 3m1½f
- 20 / 20 (87%) - Had 1 - 5 placings (1 Year)
- 20 / 20 (88%) - Had 1 - 9 placings (Hurdle)
- 20 / 20 (88%) - Won within last 2 starts
- 20 / 20 (88%) - Highest Placed is not Cl5-6
Remember to use the trends listed above, along with the Cheltenham racing predictions, to see if you can find the winner of the Bristol Novices' Hurdle. Did you know that we have an OLBG Betting School section on OLBG? It is a place to help you improve your betting experience with articles covering numerous topics.
Are you already a member? If not, then why not? With over ÂŁ6,000 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 Bristol Novices' Hurdle by adding a tip on the race here.
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Bristol Novices' Hurdle Trend Analysis
â The trend factor, which has produced 10+ winners and shows the best LSP, an LSP of +9.46, is when runners have had 2 wins in the past 90 days.
â The worst performing factor that has failed to produce a single winner is when runners had 0 places in the past 90 days, when backing these, the trend shows a record of 0-23.
The course which has produced the most winners of the Bristol Novices' Hurdle is Cheltenham; there have been a total of 9 winners of this race who ran at Cheltenham last time out.
The race is open to both sexes, with male runners having produced a total of 20 winners from a total of 140 runners, while female runners have produced 0 winners from a total of 5 runners.
Looking over the past renewals, these are the stallions whose offspring have produced multiple winners of the Bristol Novices' Hurdle:
- Old Vic (2 Wins)
- Oscar (2 Wins)
These are the stallions whose offspring have not produced a winner of the Bristol Novices' Hurdle despite multiple attempts:
- Flemensfirth (0 Wins from 7 runners)
- Milan (0 Wins from 6 runners)
Looking at the winning odds over the last 20 renewals, the biggest-priced winner was Flight Leader in 2006, winning for Colin Tizzard at odds of 16/1 under the guidance of Joe Tizzard. Looking at the runners at the head of the market over the last 20 renewals, there have been 11 winning favourites in the race. Whilst we wait for the 2026 Bristol Novices' Hurdle, remember you can get daily racing predictions from the top racing tipsters on the best racing tipsters page.
Route to the Bristol Novices' Hurdle
Many trainers target races as preparation for the Bristol Novices' Hurdle. These are the races which the recent winners ran in before coming here:
| Info | Last Race |
|---|---|
| 2025 - Carlenrig Chepstow - 2nd of 10 (11/2) | Heckler & Koch - No Compromise Maiden Hurdle |
| 2024 - Jet Blue Auteuil - 2nd of 9 (22/5) | Prix Hunorisk |
| 2023 - Shanagh Bob Plumpton - 1st of 6 (2/9) | Bookedit Novices Hurdle |
| 2021 - Blazing Khal Cheltenham - 1st of 6 (9/2) | Hyde Novices' Hurdle |
| 2020 - Make Good Gowran Park - 1st of 10 (11/2) | Holden Plant Rentals Novice Handicap Hurdle |
| 2019 - Redford Road Ascot - 2nd of 5 (9/2) | Molton Brown Novices Hurdle |
| 2018 - Rockpoint Newbury - 2nd of 12 (6/1) | Ladbrokes Handicap Hurdle |
| 2017 - Kilbricken Storm Wincanton - 1st of 11 (2/1) | EBF Stallions "National Hunt" Novices Hurdle |
| 2016 - Wholestone Cheltenham - 2nd of 9 (5/2) | Hyde Novices' Hurdle |
| 2015 - Unowhatimeanharry Newbury - 1st of 8 (1/2) | bet365.com Novices Handicap Hurdle |
Article Contributor Information
We are fortunate to have an excellent team of specialists and experts at OLBG. Contributing to the creation and maintenance of this Bristol Novices' Hurdle Preview are Andy and Darren. They both work on the Horse racing tips 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
Expert Guide
Andy Powell
Expert Guide
