Champion Stayers Hurdle Preview, Tips, Runners & Trends (Punchestown Festival)

Looking ahead to the Champion Stayers Hurdle, which takes place over 2m7½f at Punchestown during the Punchestown Festival, we dive into the history of the race to see which trainers and jockeys have dominated, and identify the statistical trends shaping the outcome of this year's renewal.
Champion Stayers Hurdle Preview, Tips, Runners & Trends (Punchestown Festival)
Andy Powell
Andy Powell Expert Guide

You know how punters get lost in too much data or bet blindly? I break down the stats and trends so you can feel confident you’re betting with more than just gut instinct.

2027 Champion Stayers Hurdle Preview

The Champion Stayers Hurdle is a Grade 1 race that is currently run on the third day of the Punchestown Festival. The runners face a three-mile trip in which they will have to contend with a total of fourteen hurdles on their way to becoming the champion stayer!

Champion Stayers Hurdle Information:

Why not use the trends shortlist below to help you narrow down the field and then head over to the dedicated Punchestown tips page to see which runners are being supported by the OLBG expert racing tipsters to find yourself a bet? We cover all of the major races at the Punchestown Festival, and below you can find links to all of the races for each of Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday & Saturday.

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How competitive is the Champion Stayers Hurdle market? When looking at the over-rounds for the last 20 renewals, the most competitive market was in 2012, when the race had an over-round of 111%. The race in 2006 was a race that was most in the bookie's favour with an over-round of 125%, whilst on average over the last 20 renewals of the Champion Stayers Hurdle, the over-round has been 120%, which means the bookie expects to pay out £100 for every £120 which is bet.

Below you will find the 2027 Champion Stayers 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 Champion Stayers Hurdle Trend Analysis.

These are the top three quickest-run Champion Stayers Hurdle races over the last 20 renewals:

  1. Asian Maze (5:44.20) in 2006
  2. Quevega (5:45.60) in 2011
  3. Refinement (5:50.70) in 2007

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 Champion Stayers Hurdle next time out, then you would have backed a total of 9 winners. Backing all 19 runners who have been out since their win at SP next time out would have returned an LSP of -1.59. Before placing your bet on the 2027 Champion Stayers Hurdle, see which other runners today are being backed on the racing predictions page.

The runner that holds the record over the past 20 renewals for the slowest time in the race was set in the 2013 renewal when Quevega from W P Mullins under the guidance of R Walsh, won in a time of 6:30.20, whilst at the other end of the spectrum, Asian Maze, trained by Thomas Mullins and ridden by R Walsh set the quickest time of 5:44.20 in the 2006 renewal.

What the expert says...
It will be no surprise that plenty come from the Stayers Hurdle at Cheltenham, in fact, the last 5 winners have all come from that race, although, of those, only Teahupoo (2024) did the double.

Andy Powell - Horse Racing Betting Expert - OLBG.com

Champion Stayers Hurdle Past Winners

Here are the Champion Stayers Hurdle past winners for the last 10 renewals. Each row details the race year, the winning horse, and the horse's age & weight. The horse's trainer and the jockey at the time of winning the Champion Stayers Hurdle are also displayed, along with the starting price at which the horse was sent off.

YearHorseInfo
2026
6:02.30
Bob Olinger (IRE)
11yo 11-10 4/1
Darragh O'Keeffe
Henry De Bromhead (IRE)
2025
5:55.90
Teahupoo (FR)
8yo 11-10 5/4F
Sam Ewing
Gordon Elliott (IRE)
2024
5:56.00
Teahupoo (FR)
7yo 11-10 5/6F
Jack Kennedy
Gordon Elliott (IRE)
2023
5:55.90
Klassical Dream (FR)
9yo 11-10 3/1F
Paul Townend
W P Mullins (IRE)
2022
6:00.00
Klassical Dream (FR)
8yo 11-10 11/10F
Paul Townend
W P Mullins (IRE)
2021
5:56.90
Klassical Dream (FR)
7yo 11-12 5/1
Mr P W Mullins
W P Mullins (IRE)
2019
6:01.80
Unowhatimeanharry (GB)
11yo 11-10 16/1
Mark Walsh
Harry Fry (GB)
2018
6:04.10
Faugheen (IRE)
10yo 11-10 11/2
David Mullins
W P Mullins (IRE)
2017
6:01.40
Unowhatimeanharry (GB)
9yo 11-10 4/1
Noel Fehily
Harry Fry (GB)
2016
6:09.20
One Track Mind (IRE)
6yo 11-10 10/1
Gavin Sheehan
Warren Greatrex (GB)

Where have the winning runners come from?

Here are the countries where the winning trainers of the Champion Stayers Hurdle have been based:

  • IRE: 15 winners with an additional 30 placings from 168 runners
  • GB: 5 winners with an additional 7 placings from 33 runners
  • FR: 0 winners with an additional 0 placings from 1 runner

2026 Champion Stayers Hurdle Replay


Champion Stayers Hurdle Trainer Statistics

The leading trainer in the Champion Stayers Hurdle over the last 20 renewals is W P Mullins, who has won the race nine times, with those nine winners coming from Fiveforthree (2009), Quevega (2010, 2011, 2012 & 2013), Faugheen (2018) and Klassical Dream (2021, 2022 & 2023). Other trainers who have recorded multiple wins in the Champion Stayers Hurdle are Gordon Elliott (2 wins), Mrs John Harrington (2 wins) and Harry Fry (2 wins).

Here are some of the top Champion Stayers 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):

TrainerR-W-PWinEW
W P Mullins55-9-24-24.32-12.71
Gordon Elliott20-2-5-15.92-12.83
Mrs John Harrington10-2-4+14.50+7.79
Harry Fry2-2-2+20.00+12.00
Henry De Bromhead8-1-1-3.00-4.60
Jonjo O'Neill5-1-3+12.00+8.60
Warren Greatrex3-1-1+8.00+4.00
Alan King3-1-2+1.33+1.50
Thomas Mullins3-1-1-1.38-1.63
Oliver McKiernan7-0-1-7.00-6.00

Champion Stayers Hurdle Jockey Statistics

The leading jockey in the Champion Stayers Hurdle over the last 20 renewals is Paul Townend, who has won the race three times, with those three winners coming from Quevega (2010) and Klassical Dream (2022 & 2023). The only other jockey to have recorded multiple wins in the Champion Stayers Hurdle is Mark Walsh (2 wins).

Here are some of the top Champion Stayers 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):

JockeyR-W-PWinEW
Paul Townend14-3-8-4.40-0.74
Mark Walsh9-2-3+11.50+5.30
Mr P W Mullins7-1-3-1.00-0.40
Jack Kennedy5-1-2-3.17-2.88
Darragh O'Keeffe4-1-1+1.00-0.60
Gavin Sheehan2-1-1+9.00+5.00
Sam Ewing2-1-1+0.25-0.25
Keith Donoghue5-0-1-5.00-3.65
Danny Mullins4-0-1-4.00-0.20
Phillip Enright4-0-0-4.00-4.00

Champion Stayers Hurdle Trend Analysis

✅ The trend factor, which has produced 10+ winners and shows the best LSP, an LSP of +18.63, is when runners had 1 season win.

❌ The worst performing factor that has failed to produce a single winner is when runners ran in a race restricted to 5yo+ last time out, when backing these, the trend shows a record of 0-66.

The course which has produced the most winners of the Champion Stayers Hurdle is Cheltenham; there have been a total of 11 winners of this race who ran at Cheltenham last time out. The next best course, which has produced the second most winners, is Aintree; there have been a total of 7 winners of this race who ran at Aintree last time out.

The race is open to both sexes, with male runners having produced a total of 14 winners from a total of 180 runners, while female runners have produced 6 winners from a total of 22 runners.

Looking over the past renewals, these are the stallions whose offspring have produced multiple winners of the Champion Stayers Hurdle:

  • Robin Des Champs (4 Wins)
  • Dream Well (3 Wins)
  • Masked Marvel (2 Wins)
  • Oscar (2 Wins)
  • Sir Harry Lewis (2 Wins)

These are the stallions whose offspring have not produced a winner of the Champion Stayers Hurdle despite multiple attempts:

  • Kings Theatre (0 Wins from 8 runners)
  • Kayf Tara (0 Wins from 7 runners)
  • Coastal Path (0 Wins from 6 runners)
  • Presenting (0 Wins from 6 runners)
  • Fame And Glory (0 Wins from 5 runners)

Looking at the winning odds over the last 20 renewals, the biggest-priced winner was Jetson in 2014, winning for Mrs John Harrington at odds of 20/1 under the guidance of Davy Russell. 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 2027 Champion Stayers Hurdle, remember you can get daily racing predictions from the top racing tipsters on the best racing tipsters page.

Route to the Champion Stayers Hurdle

Many trainers target races as preparation for the Champion Stayers Hurdle. These are the races which the recent winners ran in before coming here:

InfoLast Race
2026 - Bob Olinger
Cheltenham - 3rd of 10 (13/2)
Stayers Hurdle
2025 - Teahupoo
Cheltenham - 2nd of 13 (7/4)
Stayers Hurdle
2024 - Teahupoo
Cheltenham - 1st of 12 (5/4)
Stayers Hurdle
2023 - Klassical Dream
Cheltenham - 9th of 11 (15/2)
Stayers Hurdle
2022 - Klassical Dream
Cheltenham - 5th of 10 (11/4)
Stayers Hurdle
2021 - Klassical Dream
Leopardstown - 5th of 5 (10/11)
December Festival Hurdle
2019 - Unowhatimeanharry
Aintree - 12th of 15 (25/1)
Liverpool Hurdle
2018 - Faugheen
Cheltenham - 6th of 11 (4/1)
Champion Hurdle
2017 - Unowhatimeanharry
Cheltenham - 3rd of 12 (5/6)
Stayers Hurdle
2016 - One Track Mind
Haydock - 2nd of 6 (5/2)
Betfred "Home of Goals Galore" Hurdle

Schedule for Tuesday at the Punchestown Festival

The highlight on the opening day of the Punchestown Festival is the Grade 1 Champion Chase, which carries a purse of €300,000. There are also two other Grade 1 races on the card with the Champion Novice Hurdle and the Champion Novice Chase.

RaceLast WinnerInfo
Killashee Hotel Handicap HurdleKalix Delabarriere (FR)
6yo - 10/1
W P Mullins
Sean Cleary-Farrell
Champion Novice HurdleEachtotheirown (IRE)
7yo - 16/1
Barry Connell
Sean Flanagan
Punchestown Champion Novice ChaseWestern Fold (IRE)
7yo - 18/1
Gordon Elliott
Jack Kennedy
Goffs Defender BumperAbbeyglen (FR)
4yo - 11/2
Martin Brassil
Mr J L Gleeson
Punchestown Champion ChaseIl Etait Temps (FR)
8yo - 8/11
W P Mullins
Paul Townend

Schedule for Wednesday at the Punchestown Festival

The Punchestown Gold Cup is the feature on day two of the festival. This Grade 1 is worth €300,000 and is one of three G1 races on the card, with the Channor Novice Hurdle and Champion I.N.H. Flat Race being the others.

RaceLast WinnerInfo
Channor Group Novice HurdleLe Frimeur (FR)
5yo - 18/1
Harry Derham
J J Slevin
Champion INH Flat RaceWith Nolimit (FR)
5yo - 14/1
Gordon Elliott
Mr J M Halford
Punchestown Handicap ChaseNouvotic (FR)
7yo - 7/1
Henry De Bromhead
Darragh O'Keeffe
Punchestown Gold CupGaelic Warrior (GER)
8yo - 5/6
W P Mullins
Paul Townend

Schedule for Thursday at the Punchestown Festival

Two Grade 1 races feature on day three, the highlight of those two being the €300,000 Champion Stayers Hurdle, the other is the Barberstown Castle Novice Chase.

RaceLast WinnerInfo
Conway Piling Handicap HurdleBlue Mosque (IRE)
6yo - 6/1
Noel Meade
Donagh Meyler
Frontline Security Handicap ChaseCome Walk With Me (IRE)
7yo - 4/1
Edward Cawley
Donagh Meyler
Barberstown Castle Novice ChaseSalvator Mundi (FR)
6yo - 13/2
W P Mullins
Harry Cobden
Champion Stayers HurdleBob Olinger (IRE)
11yo - 4/1
Henry De Bromhead
Darragh O'Keeffe

Schedule for Friday at the Punchestown Festival

The Champion Hurdle is the feature on the Saturday; this Grade 1 is worth €300,000 and is one of two Grade 1s on the card, with the Champion Novice Hurdle being the other.

RaceLast WinnerInfo
Punchestown Listed Novice Handicap ChaseFuniculi Funicula (FR)
6yo - 7/2
W P Mullins
Paul Townend
Punchestown Champion Novice HurdleKing Rasko Grey (FR)
6yo - 8/13
W P Mullins
Paul Townend
Punchestown Champion HurdleLossiemouth (FR)
7yo - 2/7
W P Mullins
Paul Townend

Schedule for Saturday at the Punchestown Festival

The final day of the Punchestown Festival sees a couple of Grade 1 races, which both carry purses of €125,000, and those are the Irish EBF Mares Champion Hurdle and the Champion Four Year Old Hurdle.

RaceLast WinnerInfo
Irish EBF Mares Champion HurdlePlace De La Nation (FR)
5yo - 10/1
W P Mullins
Danny Mullins
Champion Four-Year-Old HurdleSaratoga (IRE)
4yo - 9/2
Padraig Roche
Mark Walsh
Punchestown Listed Handicap HurdleHello Neighbour (IRE)
5yo - 12/1
Gavin Cromwell
Keith Donoghue

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 Champion Stayers Hurdle Preview are Andy and Darren. They both work on the Horse Racing Tips team, overseeing the tipsters and managing the tip settlement, while also creating and managing all the horse racing event previews for National Hunt Racing.

Darren Brett

Darren Brett

Expert Guide

Darren has worked in the horse racing industry for decades bringing to OLBG for the last 20 years a wealth of knowledge, creating much of our content on these sports. Darren also manages our Grand National Guide and is the go-to font of knowledge for the world's greatest steeplechase.
Andy Powell

Andy Powell

Expert Guide

Andy, a seasoned horse racing expert with over 15 years of experience, possesses a comprehensive understanding of the sport, from delving into complex statistical data for jump racing in the UK and Ireland to crafting insightful national hunt racing blogs for OLBG.

Other Principal Races at the Punchestown Racecourse

Here are some other notable races at the Punchestown racecourse throughout the racing season that you may be interested in.

Races in February

Races in November

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