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2026 Irish Christmas Hurdle Preview
The Irish Christmas Hurdle is scheduled to take place in December of each year during the Christmas Festival at the Leopardstown racecourse. The Grade 1 hurdle is run over a trip of three miles, in which the runners will face twelve hurdles.
Irish Christmas Hurdle Information:
- Irish Christmas Hurdle Past Winners
- Irish Christmas Hurdle Trainer Statistics
- Irish Christmas Hurdle Jockey Statistics
If you are interested in other predictions at Leopardstown, then head over to the Leopardstown tips page to see which runners are being supported by the OLBG racing tipsters and also compare those predictions to the runners that make the trend shortlist when added below. You may also be interested in other preview blogs that we have packed full of information. Head down to the Races Covered during the Irish Christmas Festival section for links to these.
Best Horse Racing Betting Sites 2026
How competitive is the Irish Christmas Hurdle market? When looking at the over-rounds for the last 20 renewals, the most competitive market was in 2013 when the race had an over-round of 110%. The race in 2016 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 Irish Christmas Hurdle, the over-round has been 117%, which means the bookie expects to pay out £100 for every £117 which is bet.
Below you will find the 2026 Irish Christmas 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 Irish Christmas Hurdle Trend Analysis.
These are the top three quickest-run Irish Christmas Hurdle races over the last 20 renewals:
- Teahupoo (5:49.20) in 2025
- Sweet Kiln (5:51.30) in 2007
- Home By The Lee (5:56.10) in 2024
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 Irish Christmas Hurdle next time out, then you would have backed a total of 6 winners. Backing all 19 runners who have been out since their win at SP next time out would have returned an LSP of +1.48. Before placing your bet on the 2026 Irish Christmas 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 2020 renewal when Flooring Porter from Gavin Cromwell under the guidance of Jonathan Moore, won in a time of 6:37.80, whilst at the other end of the spectrum, Teahupoo, trained by Gordon Elliott and ridden by Jack Kennedy set the quickest time of 5:49.20 in the 2025 renewal.
Irish Christmas Hurdle Past Winners
Here are the Irish Christmas 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 Irish Christmas Hurdle are also displayed, along with the starting price at which the horse was sent off.
| Year | Horse | Info |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 5:49.20 | Teahupoo (FR) 8yo 11-10 5/2 | Jack Kennedy Gordon Elliott (IRE) |
| 2024 5:56.10 | Home By The Lee (IRE) 9yo 11-10 15/8F | J J Slevin Joseph Patrick O'Brien (IRE) |
| 2023 6:28.70 | Irish Point (FR) 5yo 11-10 1/1F | Jack Kennedy Gordon Elliott (IRE) |
| 2022 6:22.20 | Home By The Lee (IRE) 7yo 11-10 7/1 | J J Slevin Joseph Patrick O'Brien (IRE) |
| 2021 6:04.40 | Klassical Dream (FR) 7yo 11-12 7/4F | Paul Townend W P Mullins (IRE) |
| 2020 6:37.80 | Flooring Porter (IRE) 5yo 11-12 11/1 | Jonathan Moore Gavin Cromwell (IRE) |
| 2019 6:14.40 | Apples Jade (FR) 7yo 11-3 6/4F | Jack Kennedy Gordon Elliott (IRE) |
| 2018 6:01.10 | Apples Jade (FR) 6yo 11-3 8/13F | Jack Kennedy Gordon Elliott (IRE) |
| 2017 6:18.80 | Apples Jade (FR) 5yo 11-3 4/6F | Davy Russell Gordon Elliott (IRE) |
| 2016 6:06.90 | Vroum Vroum Mag (FR) 7yo 11-3 8/15F | R Walsh W P Mullins (IRE) |
Where have the winning runners come from?
Here are the countries where the winning trainers of the Irish Christmas Hurdle have been based:
- IRE: 20 winners with an additional 29 placings from 152 runners
- GB: 0 winners with an additional 1 placing from 3 runners
2025 Irish Christmas Hurdle Replay
Irish Christmas Hurdle Trainer Statistics
The leading trainer in the Irish Christmas Hurdle over the last 20 renewals is Gordon Elliott, who has won the race six times, with those six winners coming from Prince Of Scars (2015), Apples Jade (2017, 2018 & 2019), Irish Point (2023) and Teahupoo (2025). Other trainers who have recorded multiple wins in the Irish Christmas Hurdle are W P Mullins (4 wins) and Joseph Patrick O'Brien (2 wins).
Here are some of the top Irish Christmas 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gordon Elliott | 22-6-7 | +0.29 | -3.49 |
| W P Mullins | 38-4-12 | -28.72 | -22.23 |
| Joseph Patrick O'Brien | 5-2-3 | +5.88 | +5.58 |
| Noel Meade | 7-1-3 | -3.25 | -2.15 |
| Gavin Cromwell | 3-1-2 | +9.00 | +5.70 |
| Eamonn O'Connell | 3-1-2 | +7.00 | +5.10 |
| E J O'Grady | 3-1-2 | -1.33 | -0.18 |
| C A Murphy | 2-1-1 | +0.63 | +0.02 |
| Michael J Bowe | 2-1-1 | +0.10 | -0.34 |
| Mrs John Harrington | 9-0-3 | -9.00 | -4.72 |
Irish Christmas Hurdle Jockey Statistics
The leading jockey in the Irish Christmas Hurdle over the last 20 renewals is Jack Kennedy, who has won the race four times, with those four winners coming from Apples Jade (2018 & 2019), Irish Point (2023) and Teahupoo (2025). Other jockeys who have recorded multiple wins in the Irish Christmas Hurdle are Paul Townend (2 wins) and J J Slevin (2 wins).
Here are some of the top Irish Christmas 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jack Kennedy | 7-4-4 | +2.62 | +0.46 |
| Paul Townend | 10-2-4 | -4.50 | -3.99 |
| J J Slevin | 3-2-2 | +7.88 | +4.33 |
| Jonathan Moore | 1-1-1 | +11.00 | +6.88 |
| Rachael Blackmore | 6-0-2 | -6.00 | -2.90 |
| Mark Walsh | 4-0-1 | -4.00 | -0.75 |
| Danny Mullins | 4-0-1 | -4.00 | -3.18 |
| Sean Flanagan | 3-0-1 | -3.00 | -2.00 |
| Mr P W Mullins | 3-0-0 | -3.00 | -3.00 |
| Sam Ewing | 3-0-0 | -3.00 | -3.00 |
2026 Irish Christmas Hurdle Trends
Favourites finishing positions (oldest to latest): 4, 1, 1, 7, 1, 2, 2, 1, 4, 4, 1, 1, 1, (1, 4), 4, 1, 5, 1, 1, 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 (56%) - No bigger than 11/1
- 20 / 20 (67%) - Held an OR of 132+ (Last Win)
- 20 / 20 (67%) - Break of 11 - 250 days (Last Place)
- 20 / 20 (72%) - Placed within last 2 starts
- 20 / 20 (72%) - Beaten no more -13l (LTO)
- 20 / 20 (74%) - Achieved an RPR of 135+ (LTO)
- 20 / 20 (77%) - Not in a LST/Cl2/Cl4 (Last Win)
- 20 / 20 (77%) - Within the first 6 of the market
- 20 / 20 (81%) - Ran in Ireland (Last Win)
- 20 / 20 (85%) - Achieved an RPR of 139+ (Last Win)
- 20 / 20 (86%) - Ran in 6 - 34 races (Career)
- 20 / 20 (86%) - Ran in 5 - 27 races (Hurdle)
- 20 / 20 (86%) - Achieved a TS of 87+ (Last 3)
- 20 / 20 (88%) - Ran in Ireland (LTO)
- 20 / 20 (88%) - No older than a 9yo
Remember to use the trends listed above, along with the Leopardstown racing predictions, to see if you can find the winner of the Irish Christmas 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 £6,000 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 Irish Christmas Hurdle by adding a tip on the race here.
101 Ways to find Winners in Horse Racing
Irish Christmas Hurdle Trend Analysis
✅ The trend factor, which has produced 10+ winners and shows the best LSP, an LSP of +21.47, is when the runner's last win was 1 start ago.
❌ The worst performing factor that has failed to produce a single winner is when runners had 2 places in the past year, when backing these, the trend shows a record of 0-27.
The course which has produced the most winners of the Irish Christmas Hurdle is Fairyhouse; there have been a total of 11 winners of this race who ran at Fairyhouse last time out. The next best course, which has produced the second most winners, is Navan; there have been a total of 6 winners of this race who ran at Navan last time out.
The race is open to both sexes, with male runners having produced a total of 13 winners from a total of 136 runners, while female runners have produced 7 winners from a total of 19 runners.
Looking over the past renewals, these are the stallions whose offspring have produced multiple winners of the Irish Christmas Hurdle:
- Saddler Maker (3 Wins)
- Beneficial (2 Wins)
- Fame And Glory (2 Wins)
Looking over the past renewals, there is only one stallion whose offspring have been disappointed with multiple attempts but no wins in the Irish Christmas Hurdle; that stallion is Presenting, who has failed to produce a winner from 7 runners.
Looking at the winning odds over the last 20 renewals, the biggest-priced winner was Flooring Porter in 2020, winning for Gavin Cromwell at odds of 11/1 under the guidance of Jonathan Moore. Looking at the runners at the head of the market over the last 20 renewals, there have been 11 winning favourites in the race. Remember to bookmark the best racing tipsters page so you can get easy access to the best OLBG racing tipsters.
Route to the Irish Christmas Hurdle
Many trainers target races as preparation for the Irish Christmas Hurdle. These are the races which the recent winners ran in before coming here:
| Info | Last Race |
|---|---|
| 2025 - Teahupoo Fairyhouse - 1st of 6 (1/1) | Hatton's Grace Hurdle |
| 2024 - Home By The Lee Navan - 1st of 8 (7/1) | Railway Bar Lismullen Hurdle |
| 2023 - Irish Point Down Royal - 1st of 7 (5/6) | Bottlegreen Hurdle |
| 2022 - Home By The Lee Navan - 1st of 9 (29/1) | Railway Bar Lismullen Hurdle |
| 2021 - Klassical Dream Punchestown - 1st of 14 (5/1) | Champion Stayers Hurdle |
| 2020 - Flooring Porter Navan - 1st of 20 (23/1) | eCOMM Merchant Solutions Handicap Hurdle |
| 2019 - Apples Jade Fairyhouse - 3rd of 6 (5/2) | Hatton's Grace Hurdle |
| 2018 - Apples Jade Fairyhouse - 1st of 9 (4/6) | Hatton's Grace Hurdle |
| 2017 - Apples Jade Fairyhouse - 1st of 7 (1/1) | Hatton's Grace Hurdle |
| 2016 - Vroum Vroum Mag Fairyhouse - 2nd of 7 (4/7) | Hatton's Grace Hurdle |
Races Covered during the Irish Christmas Festival
Remember to head to the Leopardstown predictions page to see which runner the racing tipsters support in the Irish Christmas Hurdle. Below are the other principal races that we cover during the Irish Christmas Festival, with links to each race blog as well as information for last year's winners.
| Race | Last Winner | Info |
|---|---|---|
| Friday Racing Post Novice Chase | Romeo Coolio (GB) 6yo - 8/15 | Gordon Elliott Jack Kennedy |
| Saturday Paddy's Rewards Club Chase | Solness (FR) 7yo - 8/1 | Joseph Patrick O'Brien Sam Ewing |
| Saturday Future Champions Novice Hurdle | Skylight Hustle (IRE) 5yo - 3/1 | Gordon Elliott Jack Kennedy |
| Saturday Paddy Power Chase | Favori De Champdou (FR) 10yo - 66/1 | Gordon Elliott Sam Ewing |
| Sunday Irish Christmas Hurdle | Teahupoo (FR) 8yo - 5/2 | Gordon Elliott Jack Kennedy |
| Sunday Savills Chase | Affordale Fury (IRE) 7yo - 7/1 | Noel Meade Sam Ewing |
| Monday December Festival Hurdle | Lossiemouth (FR) 6yo - 4/6 | W P Mullins Paul Townend |
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 Irish Christmas 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
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Andy Powell
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