2023 Fighting Fifth Hurdle Tips

It’s hard to crab Constitution Hill’s form and this could well be a procession for the six-year-old when it comes to the Fighting Fifth Hurdle. The six-year-old doesn’t just win races on a consistent basis but also lands victories by sizeable margins. However, there was only three lengths to separate him and Sharjah when the pair ran against each other at Aintree.

Previously to that, Constitution Hill was able to secure a victory by nine lengths against State Man in the Champion Hurdle. It’s worth casting one eye back to last year’s Fighting Fifth where the 1/4 favourite was able to oblige by twelve lengths, with the other runners potentially competing for second place.

Love Envoi has plenty of improvement required after finishing last at Punchestown when being sent off as the 13/8 favourite in an encounter over two miles and three furlongs. The fact that the horse won that race by nearly ten lengths was a big plus, although that latest outing in Ireland will provide cause for concern.

Nemean Lion goes for trainer Kerry Lee and the six-year-old was able to score at Ffos Las last month, with this horse going up against the English Champion Hurdle winner as the Welsh Champion Hurdle winner. The horse had previously obliged in early March at Kelso Racecourse and there’s a chance that You Wear It Well can also hit the frame.

2022 Fighting Fifth Hurdle Tips

Epatante finished third at Punchestown last April when underwhelming as the odds-on favourite in the Irish Mares’ Champion Hurdle, although Nicky Henderson will feel bullish about his mares’ chances in this race. She has previously impressed at Newcastle Racecourse when winning the 2020 Fighting Fifth before dead-heating a year later.

This is a horse that was only three-and-a-half lengths behind Honeysuckle in the 2022 Champion Hurdle, with there being everything to like about a fourteen-length win in the Aintree Hurdle over two miles and four lengths. But can Constitution Hill kick on from an amazing Supreme Novices’ Hurdle performance?

The five-year-old was sent off as the 9/4 joint-favourite at the 2022 Cheltenham Festival before a stupendous win by twenty-two lengths. We will now see how the horse performs in more esteemed company although the horse racing betting odds suggests that Constitution Hill could strengthen his Champion Hurdle claims.

Knappers Hill has passed every recent test with flying colours and has to be respected. The six-year-old is third favourite when it comes to the Fighting Fifth Hurdle odds, with the latest victory being a triumph in the Unibet Elite Hurdle at Wincanton Racecourse. That was as the 11/8 joint-favourite over one mile and seven furlongs after winning at Chepstow in October.

2021 Fighting Fifth Hurdle Betting Tips

The 2021 Fighting Fifth Hurdle takes place on 27 November 2021, with Epatante the current market leader and the Nicky Henderson mare will be bidding to return to the winners’ enclosure on her seasonal debut. The horse was sent off as the 8/11 favourite in last year’s Fighting Fifth and duly obliged with a four-length victory.

However, Epatante was then chinned in the Christmas Hurdle at Kempton Park when Silver Streak lowered her colours, while the horse could only manage third place behind Honeysuckle and Sharjah in the Champion Hurdle before the finishing order was repeated in the Paddy Power Champion Hurdle at Punchestown.

Can Monmiral Step Out of the Shadows?

Lots of horse racing fans are getting excited about Monmiral and the four-year-old could be set to have a breakthrough season. The Paul Nicholls-trained charge was most recently seen winning the Doom Bar Anniversary 4-Y-O Juvenile Hurdle, with that being a hugely comfortable victory that came after an even money success at Haydock Park in a Juvenile Hurdle.

This really does look like a hot race when you consider that Abacadabras is going to be lining up and perhaps the Gordon Elliott-trained horse is the each-way value in the race, with the Gigginstown runner regularly impressing over two miles and that includes a win in the Betway Aintree Hurdle over two miles and four furlongs.

Perhaps the horse needs a bit further than two miles in order to be competitive, with fourth place in the Irish Champion Hurdle suggesting that the shorter distance is a bit stiff against some of his speedier rivals.

Sceau Royal, Teahupoo and Silver Streak Also Contenders

Sceau Royal is trading at around the 6/1 mark and there is plenty to recommend the Alan King-trained runner who has already landed two victories this season. The experienced nine-year-old won a listed race against Silver Streak at Kempton Park before obliging in the Unibet Elite Hurdle.

Teahupoo also runs for Gordon Elliott and there was a Grade 3 success over two miles at Naas which suggests that the four-year-old could run into the frame. As for Silver Streak, the eight-year-old hasn’t quite hit the heights since beating Epatante in the 2022 Christmas Hurdle.

Can Epatante Land Victory in Fighting Fifth?

Epatante made history by landing victory in the 2020 Champion Hurdle this year and the mare will head to Newcastle Racecourse as the red-hot favourite to win the Fighting Fifth, with the six-year-old bidding to have the sort of season that could see her scoop victory in this race and then potentially have a tilt at the Christmas Hurdle before the big one at Cheltenham Racecourse.

A year ago, Epatante won a Listed Race at Newbury before truly announcing her credentials in the Ladbrokes Christmas Hurdle and is now recognised as the current leading two-miler in the UK and Ireland, with Nicky Henderson hoping that his stable star obliges in the north-east in this race.

Goshen and Abacadabras Could Challenge Epatante

The 2020 Fighting Fifth Hurdle is going to be a spectacular race and we might see Goshen return to his best and challenge hard over two miles, with the Gary Moore-trained charge yet to rediscover his amazing form of last season which saw the horse sweep all before him before unseating his rider in the Triumph Hurdle when looking like an aeroplane.

Goshen fell short in a Haydock seasonal debut recently and let punters down when running at Goodwood and only finishing third when being sent off as even money favourite, with questions now whether the horse can reach the heights he set last season.

Abacadabras is a more reliable horse and finished second in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival, while the Gordon Elliott-trained charge finished second to Aspire Tower at Down Royal before a win at Punchestown when beating favourite Saint Roi.

The History of the Fighting Fifth Hurdle

This is one of the leading hurdle races that take place throughout the National Hunt racing season, with Newcastle Racecourse hosting an event which has been in place since 1969, with this being a two-mile encounter where there are nine obstacles to be overcome and it’s always a fascinating renewal.

Buveur d'Air was the high-profile of the race in 2018 and 2019, with the Nicky Henderson horse having won the Champion Hurdle in 2017 and 2018, while Irving was also able to win the race in 2014 and 2016, with My Tent Or Yours grabbing the spoils in 2013.

Trainer Nicky Henderson has won the race on five occasions, with the above two horses obliging for him along with Landing Light and Punjabi, while Comedy of Errors and Birds Nest were successful with hat-tricks during the 1970’s.