The Stayers’ Hurdle is the leading long-distance hurdle event in the National Hunt calendar and the feature race on St Patrick’s Thursday at the Cheltenham Festival.
Previously known as the World Hurdle, the Stayers’ Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race open to horses aged four years or older. It takes place on the New Course at Cheltenham which covers just under three miles and features 12 hurdles in total.
Endurance and stamina reign supreme in the Stayers’ Hurdle making for a fantastic race.
The 2025 Stayers’ Hurdle promises to be something special, with multiple top-ranking horses competing for the grand prize. See our Stayers’ Hurdle betting odds for our latest prices.
The Stayers’ Hurdle has a long and rich history at the Cheltenham festival dating back to 1912. The inaugural race was run at the legendary Prestbury Park and was won by Aftermathridden by JW Pullen, who took home £100 for coming in first.
While many impressive horses have raced to victory in the years since that first race, a total of eight horses have won the race more than once with many successfully defending their crowns in repeat succession, such as Silver Bay (1913/14), Barracuda (2002/03), and Inglis Drever (2007/08).
The most successful horse to grace this heat is Big Buck’s, having dominated the competition with four successive wins between 2009 and 2012. The only horse to come close to matching it is Flooring Porter who won back-to-back years in 2021 and 2022 before his streak was ended by Sire Du Berlais in 2023.
Ireland’s Ruby Walsh is this race’s most successful jockey, recording an impressive five wins. He won four times to set the horse record with Big Buck’s and once with Nichols Canyon in 2017.
The Stayers’ Hurdle will take place on Thursday 13th March at 16:00. It is the fourth race on the third day of Cheltenham, a day dedicated to the Irish and their passion for horse racing – hence the ‘St Patrick’s Thursday’ name.
Fans can expect another thrilling contest in 2025 with the likes of defending champion Teahupoo, Home By The Lee and Lucky Place among the early declarations for the race.
To learn more about the 2025 competitors and who we think has a shot at taking home gold, see our show-stopping Cheltenham betting tips and check out our Stayers’ Hurdle betting odds for all the latest prices.
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