Champion Hurdle Preview

The Cheltenham Festival is the most eagerly awaited event in the racing calendar for National Hunt enthusiasts.

The 2009 renewal is less than one week away and over the next 4 days we will preview the 4 Championship races starting with the Smurfit Kappa Champion Hurdle.

The Champion Hurdle is the blue ribband hurdle race in the racing calendar and there are good reasons to oppose red hot favourite Binocular, best priced 6-4 with Paddy Power.

9 out of the last 10 Champion Hurdlers had previously won at the Cheltenham Festival - it seems harsh to oppose Binocular on these grounds having finished runner up to Captain Cee Bee in the Supreme Novices Hudle on the corresponding card last year - however, he was red hot favourite that day too and we expect him to find at least one too good again.

Binocular was last seen on a racecourse when beating Celestial Halo at Ascot back in December.  Therefore, he will have to overcome an absence of 80 days and no horse in the last 10 runnings of the Champion Hurdle has won coming back from a lay off of 2 months or more.

Katchit defied a key stat last year having won as a 5 year old but he was only the 2nd horse since 1985 to have achieved this feat and lightning will have to strike twice for Binocular to win as a 5 year old.  Besides, Katchit is a real street fighter and better suited to the hurly burly of a fast paced Champion Hurdle.

There are nagging doubts surrounding Binoculars effectiveness at the track and whether the famous Cheltenham hill will blunt his pace.  All this on the back of an interrupted build-up to the race because of snow and ice at Nicky Henderson’s Seven Barrows yard.

If you are considering a bet on the Champion Hurdle our advice is to swerve the favourite and look for value elsewhere.

Osana hits a number of key trends and is a best priced 11-1 with Sportingbet and despite a mediocre season so far Katchit has won 7/7 contesting fields of more than 8 runners and his record at Cheltenham is 5/6 - may be worth a saver at a best priced 14-1 with VCBet.  A live outsider is Harchibald - yes, he’s too old, has not raced for more than 60 days and has not won at the festival but he was within a whisker of winning in 2005 and his trainer has pulled him out of his intended prep’ run at Dundalk on Friday as he says he doesn’t need it.  Any nagging doubts are quelled by his price - he’s available to back at 25-1 with Stan James and we think that is worth a fiver of anyone’s money!

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