The 2024 Cheltenham Festival gets under way tomorrow and the race of the day is the Champion Hurdle, which should still be a fascinating race despite the loss of its star attraction last week, when it was announced that Constitution Hill would not be defending his crown.
During a recent workout at Kempton Park, the seven-year-old performed poorly, prompting the need for medical evaluations. Trainer Nicky Henderson confirmed what no racegoer wanted to hear – that there was no hope of Constitution Hill recovering ahead of the Festival.
State Man, who was nine lengths behind Constitution Hill in second last year, is now the 1/3 favourite to go one better tomorrow. Willie Mullins’ horse won the Irish Champion Hurdle at the Dublin Racing Festival last month, comfortably defeating Cheltenham hopefuls Bob Olinger and Impaire Et Passe.
Other contenders in the mix include Irish Point and Iberico Lord, who are 5/1 and 10/1 respectively, with the former hoping to pip State Man. Not So Sleepy, a two-time Grade 1 winner, and Zarak The Brave, stand at 22/1 and 25/1 in the market and will be hoping to run into the places tomorrow.
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2024 Champion Hurdle odds and potential runners
Champion Hurdle odds, courtesy of Unibet, are correct at the time of publishing but subject to change.
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Favourites to win the Champion Hurdle 2024
Based on the runners’ chances of winning as implied by bookmakers’ odds.