Wednesday evening at Punchestown belonged to Gaelic Warrior and the staying chasers. Thursday’s feature — the Ladbrokes Champion Stayers Hurdle at 18:05 BST — shifts the focus to the hurdlers, and specifically to one question: can Teahupoo win this race for the third year in a row?
Gordon Elliott’s eight-year-old has won the Champion Stayers Hurdle in each of the last two renewals. He arrives at Punchestown as the 15/8 favourite in a field of eight, with first-time blinkers fitted. He is not the unbeatable market leader he might once have been.
The case for Teahupoo
His form card this season starts with a positive and ends with a question mark. The positive: he returned from a summer break to win the Christmas Hurdle at Leopardstown in December, confirming that his ability at the highest level of staying hurdles remains intact. The question: he finished sixth in the Paddy Power Stayers’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival in March. That result looks anomalous against the rest of his career — and Gordon Elliott clearly agrees, adding blinkers today as a means of sharpening his focus.
Punchestown conditions have suited Teahupoo in previous years. The track, the distance, the yielding ground — all have been in his favour before. If the blinkers work as Elliott intends, and if the Cheltenham run was simply a bad day rather than a sign of decline, the 15/8 is a fair price for a third consecutive win.
Bob Olinger (11/4)
Henry de Bromhead’s veteran is the clear market second-favourite and the most obvious danger. He finished second to Teahupoo in the Christmas Hurdle and took the bronze medal at the Cheltenham Stayers’ — consistent at the very top of the division throughout the season, without yet finding a way to beat the favourite head-on. De Bromhead’s horses tend to perform well at Punchestown, and the 11/4 reflects that pedigree.
Honesty Policy (9/2)
The most interesting runner in the field at the price. A Grade 1 novice winner who finished fifth at Cheltenham in the Stayers’ and then third in the Liverpool Hurdle, Honesty Policy has not yet hit the ceiling of his ability. Neither of those runs found the bottom of him. The step up to open Grade 1 company is the unknown, but the evidence suggests he belongs in this conversation — and at 9/2, the market is leaving a little door open.
Kawaboomga (4/1)
Solid claims at the price. Enough of a threat to keep honest, not enough form evidence to make him the selection.
The data take
Teahupoo’s Cheltenham sixth is the number that creates the market opening. A hat-trick bid at 15/8 looks generous if his true level remains what it was in December. The blinkers introduce uncertainty — they can sharpen a horse or unsettle one. Elliott’s judgement on when to use headgear is generally sound.
If Teahupoo shows his best form, this field will not beat him. If the Cheltenham effort was an indicator rather than a blip, Bob Olinger and Honesty Policy will be there to capitalise.
Going conditions: yielding at Punchestown on Wednesday, similar conditions expected for Thursday. This ground has historically suited Teahupoo.
The Champion Stayers Hurdle goes to post at 18:05 BST. Eight runners. One chance to write the hat-trick or end it.
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