2026 Sky Bet Supreme Novices' Hurdle Betting Tips
Mydaddypaddy runs for trainer Dan Skelton and the horse has clocked up a number of wins already this season. After a two-mile success at Huntingdon, there have since been successes at Carlisle and Haydock. However, there are sterner tests ahead and the betting market certainly looks to be an open one right now.
Old Park Star could go in a number of different Cheltenham races although his odds will certainly shorten up if he's put into this encounter. In December, the Nicky Henderson-trained charge was able to oblige at Prestbury Park to cement his credentials. The 5/2 chance was able to score by twelve lengths and that came after a November triumph at Kempton Park.
Doctor Du Mesnil runs for Willie Mullins and the Irish handler has enjoyed plenty of success in the Festival opener before. He saddles Kopek Des Bordes to a victory last time out and that came after successes for Klassical Dream and Appreciate It. It's hard to gauge the horse's credentials considering the only race has been a National Hunt affair over two miles and three furlongs at Cork.
Nicky Henderson has been another successful trainer when it comes to the Supreme and the Lambourn handler could have a few darts to throw in this race. Act Of Innocence was successful at Newbury at the end of November. The 11/10 favourite won over two miles and half a furlong, with that being on soft ground and there could be more to come.
Davy Crockett and Fou De Toi are other contenders that have the possibility of shortening in the market, with the former having landed a consecutive hat-trick of wins and the latest of these came in September at Listowel.
2025 Supreme Novices’ Hurdle Tips
The Supreme Novices' Hurdle is always a great way to start the 2025 Cheltenham Festival, with Salvator Mundi trading as the big favourite to win this two mile, half a furlong encounter. Willie Mullins is no stranger to success in this meeting opener, with this horse having landed back-to-back successes this season.
The latest victory came at Punchestown on 12 January, with the 8/15 shot claiming a three-length success although the charge is relatively untested. Romeo Coolio is available at roughly twice the price and the latest effort came at Leopardstown where the Gordon Elliott-trained runner was able to score by nine lengths.
This came after being beaten as the short-priced favourite at Fairyhouse at the beginning of December, with all the other horses trading at double figures. That includes Kopek Des Bordes who is another smart five-year-old runner trained by Willie Mullins. There was a Boxing Day victory for the 4/6 favourite before fending off a big field.
Workahead goes for Henry de Bromhead and the seven-year-old was something of a surprise winner at Leopardstown when triumphing in a maiden hurdle on Boxing Day. This came after a solid performance at Navan where the horse was able to finish third in a race which features impressive odds-on winner Jasmin De Vaux.
2024 Supreme Novices’ Hurdle Tips
The 2024 Supreme Novices’ Hurdle takes place over two miles, with the runners and riders battling it out to land a victory in the first race of the Cheltenham Festival. A Dream To Share has enjoyed a promising career to date, with the latest victory coming at Punchestown at the end of April when fending off seven rivals and that came after winning the Champion Bumper at the 2023 Festival.
Jeriko Du Reponet has achieved back-to-back victories in a short career to date, with the four-year-old having won at Kirkistown back in March before a more accomplished victory against seven other runners at the beginning of December. However, the horse was expected to win at short odds and we might see some tougher assignments to come.
Willie Mullins has experienced plenty of joy in previous Supreme Novice Hurdles and there was a smart victory at Naas at the end of March when obliging in a Flat Race, while Daddy Long Legs also hails from the Mullins stable and the horse demonstrated a strong turn of pace when beating Cleatus Poolaw by thirteen lengths at Thurles.
Firefox has racked up a number of significant wins and the five-year-old could the value antepost wager for the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle, with the runner landing a victory at Fairyhouse against twenty-three other runners. There was a two and a half length win over two miles on soft ground and there could be a strong showing at the Festival.
2023 Supreme Novices’ Hurdle Betting Tips
Facile Vega was the winner of the Champion Bumper at the 2022 Cheltenham Festival, with the horse then claiming a victory at Punchestown before beginning a hurdling career this season. There were December wins at Fairyhouse and Leopardstown before the six-year-old lined up as the 4/9 favourite to win the Tattersalls Ireland Novice Chase although the horse fell flat.
Jockey Paul Townend reported that the gelding stopped quickly when finishing fifth out of six runners, with Willie Mullins hoping that this run was simply an anomaly. However, there has been a significant odds drift for the Supreme Novices Hurdle and the trends suggest that runners who produced an under-par performance in their previous outing don’t run too well here.
Il Etait Temps was able to take advantage in that recent Dublin Racing Festival encounter and Danny Mullins might again be on a charge that obliged at odds of 14/1 on that occasion. Many punters will be looking to place a Cheltenham each-way bet on this selection, although Marine Nationale has been a significant market mover and perhaps he can land the spoils.
The six-year-old has not put a foot wrong when winning all of his previous four outings, with Barry Connell hoping that his horse benefits from a rest after winning the Bar One Racing Royal Bond Novice Hurdle at Fairyhouse. This was a Grade One encounter and the horse claimed a narrow victory on that occasion, with Gaelic Warrior another one to watch in this race.
2022 Supreme Novices’ Hurdle Tips
The Supreme Novices’ Hurdle betting odds are starting to shape up and we’re really intrigued to see whether Constitution Hill will be sent off as the betting favourite. The five-year-old has got plenty to recommend him despite having a modest amount of race experience. We also haven’t seen the horse run at Cheltenham, although the horse was the facile winner of the Unibet Tolworth Novices' Hurdle.This victory at Sandown Park saw Constitution Hill relatively untested and he had previously won the Andy Stewart - Sandown Park's Great Friend "National Hunt" Novices' Hurdle although things could be a good deal tougher when the horse finds that he’s in a race against viable opposition.
Which Horses Can Beat Constitution Hill in the Supreme Novices?
Willie Mullins has enjoyed plenty of success when it comes to the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle betting odds and Dysart Dynamo might find himself in the winners’ enclosure here. Since 23 March 2021, the horse has landed four successive victories and the latest of these was a nineteen-length triumph in the Sky Bet Moscow Flyer Novice Hurdle which was against a relatively strong field.
Paul Townend is likely to be on board this six-year-old and the current Cheltenham betting odds of around 9/2 makes plenty of appeal about a runner who has performed very well so far during his career. Mullins also has Sir Gerhard and there have been a couple of recent wins at Leopardstown which saw the seven-year-old impress spectators at the course.
Let’s not forget that this horse already has won at the 2021 Cheltenham Festival, with Sir Gerhard winning last season’s Champion Bumper, with the runner being sent off as the 8/13 favourite to win the Tattersalls Ireland Novice Hurdle before delivering the goods when it came to this Grade 1 encounter.
Jonbon is another exciting runner and this is a Mullins horse who also boasts an unbeaten record coming into the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle. Indeed, there are lots of runners putting strong track records on the line although Dysart Dynamo is the one to potentially back.
Can Ferny Hollow Win for Willie Mullins?
Willie Mullins is no stranger to success when it comes to the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle, with the Irish handler having scored with Champagne Fever, Vautour, Douvan and Klassical Dream, so perhaps Ferny Hollow is a horse worth following.
Ferny Hollow won the Champion Bumper at the 2020 Cheltenham Festival and we often see horses go on from this nursery race to claim bigger victories, with a recent facile win at Gowran Park and Paul Townend likely to be on board for this renewal.
Appreciate It was second in the 2020 Champion Bumper and the horse landed a straightforward enough win when scoring in the Maiden Hurdle with more to come from a horse that is trained by Willie Mullins so it looks as though the Irish trainer could be mob-handed for this race.
Dusart and Forged In Fire Also Among Supreme Favourites
Dusart is a relatively unknown quantity although this horse will run for Nicky Henderson during the 2020/21 season and the runner was able to score a victory at Newbury Racecourse on 5 November when beating favourite Soaring Glory, with the horse likely to be a good each-way proposition for this encounter.
Forged In Fire is another horse that could rise to the fore between now and the Supreme, with the horse not seen at a racecourse for over a year although he does have strong previous form after beating Ferny Hollow.
The Supreme Novices’ Hurdle is the opening race of the 2020 Cheltenham Festival and it’s usually a hammer and tongs affair where we often see a new superstar of National Hunt racing crowned.
The superstar of 2020 could be Envoi Allen according to the latest prices, with the horse currently trading to win the Supreme on Tuesday 10 March and it’s easy to see why many are starting to back a horse who was so impressive at last year’s Festival.
The horse was well backed to win the 2019 Weatherbys Champion Bumper and duly obliged at odds of 2/1, with the Gordon Elliott-trained horse having enjoyed a narrow victory over Blue Sari.
Since that victory, Envoi Allen has returned to the track and obliged with a victory at Down Royal where Davy Russell was on board, with the horse priced at 1/4 and it appears that all roads now lead to the Supreme.
Elliott was duly impressed by the latest performance, and said: “We think the world of him – we think he could be anything.
“He showed a lot of pace there today. He wouldn’t want to be stepping up in trip too much for the time being. He’s very, very good.
“He was clever – he got in close to one or two, but he learned plenty there.
“I’d imagine we would probably go to Fairyhouse now for the Royal Bond.”
Nevertheless, there’s a long way to go between now and the Festival, with several other horses sure to rise to prominence and that includes Malone Road who is trading between odds of 9/1 and 14/1.
This is another Gordon Elliott horse and the five-year-old has done everything required of him so far, with November victories at Down Royal and Punchestown illustrating that he has plenty of class.
The Gigginstown House Stud have an interesting horse in the form of Abacadabras, with Elliott again the handler for a runner who was able to finish a creditable fourth in the bumper last Festival and connections seem to favour the Supreme Novices’ route with this horse.
After the Bumper, Abacadabras then turned up at Punchestown to finish second in a race, while there have more recently been wins at Gowran Park and Navan to indicate that the horse has a bright future.
Blue Sari was second in the 2019 Bumper and the horse is currently trading at 14/1, with the four-year-old potentially being the great hope for trainer Willie Mullins.
There was a recently facile win at Punchestown in mid-November and it should be noted that there was little between him and Envoi Allen at the Festival last year.
Supreme Novices Hurdle FAQ
The Supreme Novices’ Hurdle takes place on Tuesday 11 March 2025, with this being the opening race of the Cheltenham Festival. It is scheduled to go off at 1.20pm and the start is accompanied by the famous Cheltenham roar which signifies the start of the meeting.
The betting market is subject to change, although the early front runners include Salvator Mundi, Romeo Coolio and Kaid D’Authie. The odds will be changing a great deal as we get closer to the race taking place and there will be plenty of market movers.
In order to bet on the Supreme Novices' Hurdle, we recommend heading to Racing-Odds.com and comparing the bookmaker odds. You can then identify the selection that you want to back and the bookie who is offering the biggest price when it comes to this pick.
Favourites don’t actually have too strong a record when it comes to the Cheltenham Festival opener, with four of the previous twenty renewals going the way of the market leader. However, eleven of the past dozen winners were sent off at single figure odds and that’s worth bearing in mind.
The 2024 Supreme Novices' Hurdle was won by Slade Steel, with the Henry de Bromhead-trained charge being ridden by Rachael Blackmore. It was the second consecutive time that a six-year-old had notched a victory after Marine Nationale had previously been successful.
The Supreme Novices' Hurdle is the opening race of the Cheltenham Festival and you will therefore find many bookmakers offering favourable each-way terms on the race. If you want to bet each-way, you can select a runner and then choose to split your stake equally on the win and place parts.
The Supreme Novices' Hurdle can be watched online through a bookmaker that offers a Bet and Watch service. This requires customers to have an account with the bookie in question, with a funded balance or placed bet allowing you to watch the action from start to finish.
We recommend studying the form before deciding to go ahead with your Supreme Novices' Hurdle bets. There’s nothing to stop you backing more than one horse and it’s worth investigating the latest betting tips to try and identify the horse most likely to land a victory.