Cheltenham Festival: Champion Hurdle Expert Betting Tips
The Champion Hurdle (15:30) is the feature event on an intriguing first day of the Cheltenham Festival.
There is no Constitution Hill to defend the crown he won in stunning fashion last year, but eight classy hurdlers are set to line up in a bid to claim the title of champion.
Run on Cheltenham's Old Course and with the emphasis on speed, the Champion Hurdle typically goes to a slick hurdler who is capable of getting from one side of the hurdle to the other without any mishaps.
Last year's runner-up State Man heads the market in Constitution Hill's absence and is long odds-on to give trainer Willie Mullins a fifth win in the race.
Selection: Iberico Lord @ 11/1
Outsider to note: Luccia @ 33/1
Improving Iberico progressing quickly enough to lord it over Champion rivals
Nicky Henderson suffered a big blow when having to rule Constitution Hill out of his Champion Hurdle defence last week, but he quickly reacted by supplementing IBERICO LORD and that looks significant. If there is one trainer who knows what it takes to stop the Mullins battalion it is Henderson.
The Seven Barrows trainer has saddled more Champion Hurdle winners (nine) than anyone else and four of the last seven runnings have gone his way, so he wouldn’t be supplementing this handicap winner unless he thought he were up to it.
And Iberico Lord has looked like he might have the class to make the step up in grade this season because not many horses are capable of winning two big handicaps like he has in the space of one season.
Iberico Lord ran away with the Greatwood over course and distance in November, when he had stablemate Luccia behind in third, and he put a poor run at Ascot in between behind him by landing the Betfair Hurdle at Newbury last month. That is traditionally one of the strongest races run all season.
The third and fifth from that race went on to fill the first two places in the Imperial Cup at Sandown on Saturday, so the form is evidently strong, and the Betfair Hurdle was also once seen as a good stepping stone to the Champion. Plenty of top-class handicappers like Iberico Lord have improved enough to make their presence felt at the top table.
He needs to progress again, but he is lightly raced and it’s hard to know the ceiling of his ability.
We know where State Man is, in comparison, and Iberico Lord might be able to reach his level. It will be a surprise if he can’t put it up to the favourite at the very least.
Punt on Luccia could prove lucky for Henderson supporters
The other horse who is interesting at a bigger price is Iberico Lord’s stablemate LUCCIA.
She is another for whom Henderson holds high hopes and she also wouldn’t be lining up in the race if her trainer didn’t think she would be competitive.
Time has told us that she had an impossible task when attempting to give 10lb to Iberico Lord in the Greatwood over course and distance in November and she probably did well to finish only seven lengths behind him in third. She has a 17lb pull in the weights with the mares’ allowance this time.
Luccia proved she is on the upgrade herself when beating a smart field, including her other stablemate Impose Toi, in a hot handicap at Ascot over Christmas and she has been put away with a crack at this race in mind since. There is every chance she can take another big step forward.
She will need to, of course, in this Grade 1 event, but she was fourth in the Mares’ Novices' Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival last year, and Henderson had Epatante compete in that race before she went on to land the Champion the following year.
It is therefore a tried-and-tested method for the trainer and Luccia doesn’t have that much to find provided she can continue her recent run of progress.