UniBet Champion Hurdle. Tuesday 10th March. 13:30. Prize: £264,610
The Cheltenham Festival is just around the corner meaning that over a quarter of a million of punters will flock to the town over four days of racing.
Throughout the week, around £6 million is set to be bet at the races with many other millions being wagered across the UK.
Here at Park Life Sport we will be previewing the featured race from each day starting with the UniBet Champion Hurdle at 13:30 on Tuesday.
The Champion Hurdle last year offered up great drama with favourite and two-time winner Buveur d’Air falling at the third hurdle.
16/1 shot Espoir D’Allen was victorious last year for trainer Gavin Cromwell after Mark Walsh rode him to victory.
In the 2020 spectacle there will be a new winner with non of the runners currently having a Champion Hurdle trophy.
Nicky Henderson trained Epatante is currently bookies favourite at 7/2 to gain the prize.
Pentland Hills is Epatante’s closest rival according to the bookies, with the 5 year old also being trained by Henderson.
The prize pot for the winner is £264,610 making it the second biggest prize money behind the Gold Cup for the whole festival.
There will be 17 runners for the Champion Hurdle with Henderson’s Verdana Blue who has been pulled out due to the ground meaning the iconic trainer will only have four horses racing in the Champion Hurdle.
Supasundae is seen as being the best value at around 12/1with three victories at the top level and racing 14 times in the premier grade.
The ground looks to be suiting the Jessica Harrington trained 10 year-old, as they look to mount a challenge on favourite Epatante.
Here at Park Life Sport, we will be providing all the latest news in the build up and throughout the Cheltenham Festival.