Horse Racing stats man, Andy has contributed to OLBG for 18 years - An Ipswich fan and F1 fanatic, he also contributes EFL football and Motor Sport opinion.
2025 Welsh Champion Hurdle Preview
Established in 1969, the Welsh Champion Hurdle is scheduled to take place in October of each year at the Ffos Las racecourse, the race is a Class 2 Limited Handicap Hurdle which is open to runners who are aged four years old or older, it is run over a trip of just shy of two miles in which the runners have to jump a total of eight hurdles.
Originally run at Chepstow racecourse and was dropped from the racing calendar in 2003 after a decline in the number of runners being entered into the race, however, in 2011 the race was revived at Ffos Las.
Welsh Champion Hurdle Information:
- Welsh Champion Hurdle Past Winners
- Welsh Champion Hurdle Trainer Statistics
- Welsh Champion Hurdle Jockey Statistics
To see which runners the OLBG racing tipsters are tipping throughout the card that includes this race, head over to the Ffos Las tips on the day of the race, do they agree with the runners on the trend shortlist or are they predicting other runners?
How competitive is the Welsh Champion Hurdle market? When looking at the over-rounds for the last 13 renewals, the most competitive market was in 2022 when the race had an over-round of 109%. The race in 2019 was a race that was most in the bookie's favour with an over-round of 124%, whilst on average over the last 13 renewals of the Welsh Champion Hurdle, the over-round has been 118%, which means the bookie expects to pay out £100 for every £118 which is bet.
Welsh Champion Hurdle Trends:
Looking at the future form, is the winner worth following next time out? From the past 13 if you had followed the winner of the Welsh Champion Hurdle next time out then you would have backed a total of 2 winners. Backing all 12 runners who have been out since to win at SP next time out, would have returned an LSP of +23.80. Ahead of the 2025 Welsh Champion Hurdle why not head over to the racing predictions for tips on other races today?
When looking over the past 13 renewals, a time of 3:34.43 was set by Effernock Fizz in 2022, which is the quickest time over that period, the runner was trained by Cian Michael Collins and ridden by Sam Ewing. The slowest winning time was set in 2013 when Medinas won in a time of 5:39.10, booked to ride was Wayne Hutchinson by the trainer Alan King.
These are the top three quickest-run Welsh Champion Hurdle over the last 13 renewals:
- Effernock Fizz (3:34.43) in 2022
- Nemean Lion (3:37.84) in 2023
- Glory And Fortune (3:40.81) in 2021
Welsh Champion Hurdle Past Winners
Here are the Welsh Champion 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 Welsh Champion Hurdle are also displayed, along with the starting price at which the horse was sent off.
Race Notes: No race in 2012 and in 2016 the race was originally scheduled for February but was abandoned due to waterlogging, it was rescheduled in October.
| Year | Horse | Info |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 3:44.86 | Lump Sum (FR) 6yo 11-6 11/10F | Dylan Johnston (5lbs) Sam Thomas (GB) |
| 2023 3:37.84 | Nemean Lion (GER) 6yo 11-4 3/1F | Richard Patrick Kerry Lee (GB) |
| 2022 3:34.43 | Effernock Fizz (IRE) 7yo 10-6 9/2 | Sam Ewing Cian Michael Collins (IRE) |
| 2021 3:40.81 | Glory And Fortune (IRE) 6yo 10-7 11/2 | Stan Sheppard Tom Lacey (GB) |
| 2020 3:41.20 | Sceau Royal (FR) 8yo 11-6 10/1 | Daryl Jacob Alan King (GB) |
| 2019 3:51.00 | Monsieur Lecoq (FR) 5yo 10-5 7/2 | Chester Williams (5lbs) Mrs Jane Williams (GB) |
| 2018 3:47.10 | Silver Streak (IRE) 5yo 10-4 3/1F | Adam Wedge Evan Williams (GB) |
| 2017 3:51.50 | The New One (IRE) 9yo 11-5 2/1F | Mr Z Baker (5lbs) Nigel Twiston-Davies (GB) |
| 2016 3:44.20 | Garde La Victoire (FR) 7yo 11-10 11/4 | Richard Johnson Philip Hobbs (GB) |
| 2015 5:25.00 | Silsol (GER) 6yo 11-3 8/1 | Jack Sherwood (7lbs) Paul Nicholls (GB) |
Where have the winning runners come from?
Here are the countries where the winning trainers of the Welsh Champion Hurdle have been based:
- GB: 12 winners with an additional 20 placings from 113 runners
- IRE: 1 winner with an additional 1 placing from 5 runners
Welsh Champion Hurdle Trainer Statistics
There are two leading trainers in the Welsh Champion Hurdle over the last 13 renewals with both Paul Nicholls and Alan King who have both won the race two times. Paul Nicholls winners have been with Saphir Du Rheu (2014) and Silsol (2015). Alan King winners have been with Medinas (2013) and Sceau Royal (2020).
Here are some of the top Welsh Champion Hurdle trainer statistics over the last 13 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paul Nicholls | 7-2-4 | +5.00 | +3.45 |
| Alan King | 3-2-2 | +15.00 | +9.00 |
| Evan Williams | 12-1-3 | -8.00 | -5.70 |
| Nigel Twiston-Davies | 6-1-2 | -3.00 | -2.44 |
| Sam Thomas | 4-1-2 | -1.90 | -1.49 |
| Nicky Henderson | 4-1-3 | -2.71 | -0.63 |
| Philip Hobbs | 3-1-2 | +0.75 | +0.82 |
| Tom Lacey | 2-1-1 | +4.50 | +2.44 |
| Mrs Jane Williams | 2-1-1 | +2.50 | +1.10 |
| Kerry Lee | 2-1-2 | +2.00 | +2.70 |
Welsh Champion Hurdle Jockey Statistics
Here are some of the top Welsh Champion Hurdle jockey statistics over the last 13 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adam Wedge | 4-1-2 | +0.00 | -0.45 |
| Daryl Jacob | 3-1-2 | +8.00 | +5.02 |
| Stan Sheppard | 3-1-1 | +3.50 | +1.44 |
| Chester Williams | 2-1-1 | +2.50 | +1.10 |
| Richard Patrick | 2-1-2 | +2.00 | +2.70 |
| Sam Ewing | 1-1-1 | +4.50 | +2.81 |
| Mr Z Baker | 1-1-1 | +2.00 | +1.25 |
| Dylan Johnston | 1-1-1 | +1.10 | +0.66 |
| Sean Bowen | 6-0-0 | -6.00 | -6.00 |
| Sam Twiston-Davies | 5-0-3 | -5.00 | -1.97 |
2025 Welsh Champion Hurdle Trends
Favourites finishing positions (oldest to latest): 1, 13, 2, (3, 4, PU), 2, (1, 2), (1, 4), 3, 8, 8, 3, (1, 10), 1
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.
- 13 / 13 (60%) - No bigger than 10/1 (LTO)
- 13 / 13 (60%) - No bigger than 10/1
- 13 / 13 (69%) - Fewer than 9 races (Hcps)
- 13 / 13 (72%) - Within the first 7 of the market
- 13 / 13 (76%) - Achieved a TS of 94+ (Going)
- 13 / 13 (77%) - Achieved a TS of 91+ (Last Win)
- 13 / 13 (78%) - Achieved a TS of 119+ (Career)
- 13 / 13 (79%) - Held an OR of 131+ (Career)
- 13 / 13 (80%) - Highest Placed is not Cl3-4
- 13 / 13 (80%) - Is not GB bred
- 13 / 13 (80%) - Highest Won is not Cl3/Cl5
- 13 / 13 (81%) - Won by at least ¾ (Last Win)
- 13 / 13 (86%) - Not BL/BR/CH in colour
- 13 / 13 (86%) - Ran in 1 - 19 races (Further)
- 13 / 13 (89%) - Achieved an RPR of 113+ (Going)
Remember to use the trends listed above along with the Ffos Las racing predictions to see if you can find the winner of the Welsh Champion Hurdle. if you are unaware of what trends and statistics are, how they can be used etc then head over to the OLBG Betting School and read this Stats And Trends article which will make everything much clearer.
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 Welsh Champion Hurdle by adding a tip on the race here.
Welsh Champion Hurdle Trend Analysis
The trend factor which had produced 7+ winners and shows the best LSP, an LSP of +3.64 is when runners ran in a Non Handicap last time out. The worst performing factor that has failed to produce a single winner is when runners were GB bred, when backing these the trend shows a record of 0-24.
The course which has produced the most winners of the Welsh Champion Hurdle is Cheltenham, there has been a total number of 5 winners of this race who ran at Cheltenham last time out.
The race is open to both sexes with the Male runners having produced a total of 12 winners from a total of 111 runners whilst the Female runners have produced 1 winner from a total of 7 runners.
These are the stallions whose offspring have not produced a winner of the Welsh Champion Hurdle despite multiple attempts:
- Kayf Tara (0 Wins from 6 runners)
- Dylan Thomas (0 Wins from 5 runners)
Looking at the winning odds over the last 13 renewals, the biggest-priced winner was Sceau Royal in 2020, winning for Alan King at odds of 10/1 under the guidance of Daryl Jacob. Looking at the runners at the head of the market over the last 13 renewals there have been 5 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.
Article Contributor Information
We are blessed with an excellent team of specialists and experts at OLBG. Contributing to creating and maintaining this Welsh Champion Hurdle Preview are at hand, Andy and James. They both work on the Horse racing tips team 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.
James Banting
Tipster Competition Assistant
Andy Powell
Content Editor
