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 youâre betting with more than just gut instinct.
2026 Punchestown Champion Hurdle Preview
The feature race on day four of the festival is the Punchestown Champion Hurdle, a Grade 1 race that is run over a trip of two miles, in which nine hurdles stand between the runners and being crowned champion. The race is open to runners who are aged four or older.
Punchestown Champion Hurdle Information:
- Punchestown Champion Hurdle Past Winners
- Punchestown Champion Hurdle Trainer Statistics
- Punchestown Champion Hurdle Jockey Statistics
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.
Best Horse Racing Betting Sites 2026
How competitive is the Punchestown Champion 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 108%. The race in 2010 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 Punchestown Champion Hurdle, the over-round has been 114%, which means the bookie expects to pay out ÂŁ100 for every ÂŁ114 which is bet.
Below you will find the 2026 Punchestown Champion 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 Punchestown Champion Hurdle Trend Analysis.
These are the top three quickest-run Punchestown Champion Hurdle races over the last 20 renewals:
- Hurricane Fly (3:49.60) in 2011
- Wicklow Brave (3:49.90) in 2017
- Macs Joy (3:51.80) in 2006
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 Punchestown Champion Hurdle next time out, then you would have backed a total of 9 winners. Backing all 18 runners who have been out since their win at SP next time out would have returned an LSP of +2.08. Whilst we wait for the 2026 Punchestown Champion Hurdle, remember you can get daily racing predictions from the expert tipsters on the racing predictions page.
When looking over the past 20 renewals, a time of 3:49.60 was set by Hurricane Fly in 2011, trained by W P Mullins and ridden by R Walsh, which is the quickest time over that period. The slowest winning time was set in 2013 when Hurricane Fly won in a time of 4:14.30 for trainer W P Mullins, who booked R Walsh in the saddle.
Punchestown Champion Hurdle Past Winners
Here are the Punchestown Champion 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 Punchestown Champion Hurdle are also displayed, along with the starting price at which the horse was sent off.
| Year | Horse | Info |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 3:57.00 | State Man (FR) 8yo 11-12 9/4 | Paul Townend W P Mullins (IRE) |
| 2024 4:04.70 | State Man (FR) 7yo 11-12 2/7F | Paul Townend W P Mullins (IRE) |
| 2023 3:58.90 | State Man (FR) 6yo 11-12 2/5F | Paul Townend W P Mullins (IRE) |
| 2022 3:51.80 | Honeysuckle (GB) 8yo 11-5 1/5F | Rachael Blackmore Henry De Bromhead (IRE) |
| 2021 3:53.10 | Honeysuckle (GB) 7yo 11-7 4/7F | Rachael Blackmore Henry De Bromhead (IRE) |
| 2019 3:54.30 | Buveur DAir (FR) 8yo 11-12 2/1F | Davy Russell Nicky Henderson (GB) |
| 2018 4:00.90 | Supasundae (GB) 8yo 11-12 7/1 | Robbie Power Mrs John Harrington (IRE) |
| 2017 3:49.90 | Wicklow Brave (GB) 8yo 11-12 12/1 | Mr P W Mullins W P Mullins (IRE) |
| 2016 4:01.60 | Vroum Vroum Mag (FR) 7yo 11-5 4/6F | R Walsh W P Mullins (IRE) |
| 2015 3:56.30 | Faugheen (IRE) 7yo 11-12 1/6F | R Walsh W P Mullins (IRE) |
Where have the winning runners come from?
Here are the countries where the winning trainers of the Punchestown Champion Hurdle have been based:
- IRE: 18 winners with an additional 16 placings from 107 runners
- GB: 2 winners with an additional 4 placings from 19 runners
2025 Punchestown Champion Hurdle Replay
Punchestown Champion Hurdle Trainer Statistics
The leading trainer in the Punchestown Champion Hurdle over the last 20 renewals is W P Mullins, who has won the race ten times, with those ten winners coming from Hurricane Fly (2010, 2011, 2012 & 2013), Faugheen (2015), Vroum Vroum Mag (2016), Wicklow Brave (2017) and State Man (2023, 2024 & 2025). Other trainers who have recorded multiple wins in the Punchestown Champion Hurdle are Mrs John Harrington (3 wins), Nicky Henderson (2 wins) and Henry De Bromhead (2 wins). One trainer has not had the best of times in the Punchestown Champion Hurdle; Gordon Elliott has sent a total of 11 runners to the race without recording a win.
Here are some of the top Punchestown Champion 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| W P Mullins | 40-10-19 | -10.11 | +1.65 |
| Mrs John Harrington | 8-3-5 | +5.55 | +2.11 |
| Nicky Henderson | 10-2-5 | -4.00 | -2.40 |
| Henry De Bromhead | 8-2-3 | -5.23 | -4.34 |
| C A Murphy | 3-1-1 | +0.00 | +0.25 |
| C Byrnes | 2-1-2 | +1.00 | +1.20 |
| H Rogers | 1-1-1 | +20.00 | +12.00 |
| Gordon Elliott | 11-0-0 | -11.00 | -9.00 |
| Noel Meade | 8-0-1 | -8.00 | -7.42 |
| David Pipe | 3-0-0 | -3.00 | -2.00 |
Punchestown Champion Hurdle Jockey Statistics
The leading jockey in the Punchestown Champion Hurdle over the last 20 renewals is Paul Townend, who has won the race four times, with those four winners coming from Hurricane Fly (2010) and State Man (2023, 2024 & 2025).
Here are some of the top Punchestown Champion 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paul Townend | 12-4-7 | -2.06 | +3.41 |
| Mr P W Mullins | 5-1-3 | +8.00 | +6.60 |
| Jack Kennedy | 5-0-0 | -5.00 | -4.00 |
| Danny Mullins | 3-0-1 | -3.00 | -1.08 |
| Keith Donoghue | 2-0-0 | -2.00 | -2.00 |
| Mark Walsh | 2-0-0 | -2.00 | -2.00 |
| Lorcan Williams | 1-0-1 | -1.00 | +1.25 |
| J J Slevin | 1-0-0 | -1.00 | +0.00 |
| Sean Flanagan | 1-0-0 | -1.00 | -1.00 |
| Darragh O'Keeffe | 1-0-0 | -1.00 | -1.00 |
2026 Punchestown Champion Hurdle Trends
Favourites finishing positions (oldest to latest): 2, 2, 2, 2, (1, 3), 6, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 7, F, (1, 5), 1, 1, 1, 1, 5
The percentage shown is the proportion 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%) - No bigger than 20/1
- 20 / 20 (71%) - Beaten no more -14½l (LTO)
- 20 / 20 (72%) - Not in a G3/Cl2/Cl4 (Last Win)
- 20 / 20 (74%) - Not on GS/GF/FM/STD (Debut)
- 20 / 20 (75%) - Highest Won is not G2/LST/Cl2/Cl4
- 20 / 20 (75%) - Not in a G2-3/Cl2 (LTO)
- 20 / 20 (77%) - Achieved a TS of 97+ (Last Win)
- 20 / 20 (79%) - Break of 12 - 367 days (Last Win)
- 20 / 20 (80%) - Had 5 - 19 wins (Career)
- 20 / 20 (80%) - Had 8 - 24 placings (Career)
- 20 / 20 (80%) - Achieved an RPR of 151+ (Last 3)
- 20 / 20 (81%) - Ran in 9 - 31 races (Career)
- 20 / 20 (81%) - Achieved an RPR of 146+ (Class)
- 20 / 20 (83%) - Placed within last 3 starts
- 20 / 20 (85%) - Ran in 5 - 21 races (Hurdle)
Remember to use the trends listed above, along with the Punchestown racing predictions, to see if you can find the winner of the Punchestown Champion 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 Punchestown Champion Hurdle by adding a tip on the race here.
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Punchestown Champion Hurdle Trend Analysis
â The trend factor, which has produced 10+ winners and shows the best LSP, an LSP of +13.45, is when runners finished in 1st last time out.
â The worst performing factor that has failed to produce a single winner is when runners had a highest class won of Class 1 (G2), when backing these, the trend shows a record of 0-26.
The course which has produced the most winners of the Punchestown Champion Hurdle is Cheltenham; there have been a total of 14 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 4 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 17 winners from a total of 114 runners, while female runners have produced 3 winners from a total of 12 runners.
Looking over the past renewals, these are the stallions whose offspring have produced multiple winners of the Punchestown Champion Hurdle:
- Montjeu (4 Wins)
- Doctor Dino (3 Wins)
- Sulamani (2 Wins)
Looking at the winning odds over the last 20 renewals, the biggest-priced winner was Silent Oscar in 2007, winning for H Rogers at odds of 20/1 under the guidance of Robbie Power. Looking at the runners at the head of the market over the last 20 renewals, there have been 12 winning favourites in the race. Before placing your bet on the 2026 Punchestown Champion Hurdle, head over to see which runners the best racing tipsters are tipping today.
Route to the Punchestown Champion Hurdle
Many trainers target races as preparation for the Punchestown Champion Hurdle. These are the races which the recent winners ran in before coming here:
| Info | Last Race |
|---|---|
| 2025 - State Man Cheltenham - F of 7 (8/1) | Champion Hurdle |
| 2024 - State Man Cheltenham - 1st of 8 (2/5) | Champion Hurdle |
| 2023 - State Man Cheltenham - 2nd of 7 (7/2) | Champion Hurdle |
| 2022 - Honeysuckle Cheltenham - 1st of 10 (8/11) | Champion Hurdle |
| 2021 - Honeysuckle Cheltenham - 1st of 10 (11/10) | Champion Hurdle |
| 2019 - Buveur DAir Aintree - 2nd of 7 (5/6) | Aintree Hurdle |
| 2018 - Supasundae Aintree - 2nd of 9 (11/10) | Aintree Hurdle |
| 2017 - Wicklow Brave Cheltenham - 7th of 11 (23/1) | Champion Hurdle |
| 2016 - Vroum Vroum Mag Cheltenham - 1st of 19 (4/6) | Close Brothers Mares Hurdle |
| 2015 - Faugheen Cheltenham - 1st of 8 (4/5) | Champion 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 âŹ300,000. There are also two other Grade 1 races on the card with the Champion Novice Hurdle and the Champion Novice Chase.
| Race | Last Winner | Info |
|---|---|---|
| Killashee Hotel Handicap Hurdle | Ascending Lark (GB) 7yo - 8/1 | Harry Derham Paul O'Brien |
| Champion Novice Hurdle | Irancy (FR) 7yo - 18/1 | W P Mullins Mark Walsh |
| Punchestown Champion Novice Chase | Champ Kiely (IRE) 9yo - 22/1 | W P Mullins Danny Mullins |
| Goffs Defender Bumper | Wonderful Everyday (IRE) 4yo - 16/1 | W P Mullins Miss R Dudfield |
| Punchestown Champion Chase | Marine Nationale (IRE) 8yo - 2/1 | Barry Connell Sean Flanagan |
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 âŹ300,000 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.
| Race | Last Winner | Info |
|---|---|---|
| Channor Group Novice Hurdle | Jasmin De Vaux (FR) 6yo - 13/8 | W P Mullins Paul Townend |
| Champion INH Flat Race | Bambino Fever (IRE) 5yo - 11/8 | W P Mullins Miss J Townend |
| Punchestown Handicap Chase | James Du Berlais (FR) 9yo - 7/1 | W P Mullins J J Slevin |
| Punchestown Gold Cup | Galopin Des Champs (FR) 9yo - 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 âŹ300,000 Champion Stayers Hurdle, the other is the Barberstown Castle Novice Chase.
| Race | Last Winner | Info |
|---|---|---|
| Conway Piling Handicap Hurdle | Jeriko Du Reponet (FR) 6yo - 13/2 | Nicky Henderson James Bowen |
| Frontline Security Handicap Chase | Petit Tonnerre (FR) 7yo - 16/1 | Jonjo & A J O'Neill Richie McLernon |
| Barberstown Castle Novice Chase | Majborough (FR) 5yo - 4/11 | W P Mullins Mark Walsh |
| Champion Stayers Hurdle | Teahupoo (FR) 8yo - 5/4 | Gordon Elliott Sam Ewing |
Schedule for Friday at the Punchestown Festival
The Champion Hurdle is the feature on the Saturday; this Grade 1 is worth âŹ300,000 and is one of two Grade 1s on the card, with the Champion Novice Hurdle being the other.
| Race | Last Winner | Info |
|---|---|---|
| Punchestown Listed Novice Handicap Chase | Sea Music (IRE) 7yo - 28/1 | Emmet Mullins Donagh Meyler |
| Punchestown Champion Novice Hurdle | Final Demand (IRE) 6yo - 7/4 | W P Mullins Paul Townend |
| Punchestown Champion Hurdle | State Man (FR) 8yo - 9/4 | 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 âŹ125,000, and those are the Irish EBF Mares Champion Hurdle and the Champion Four Year Old Hurdle.
| Race | Last Winner | Info |
|---|---|---|
| Irish EBF Mares Champion Hurdle | Jade De Grugy (FR) 6yo - 1/1 | W P Mullins Paul Townend |
| Champion Four-Year-Old Hurdle | Lulamba (FR) 4yo - 11/10 | Nicky Henderson James Bowen |
| Punchestown Listed Handicap Hurdle | Hey Sunshine (IRE) 6yo - 11/2 | 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 Punchestown Champion 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
Expert Guide
Andy Powell
Expert Guide
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.
