Day four of this year’s Punchestown Festival features the Boodles Champion Hurdle, with Lossiemouth set to go off as a short-priced favourite.
Willie Mullins will be looking to continue an excellent week by landing this prize for a record-extending 12th time, with his tally buoyed by four wins for Hurricane Fly and a recent State Man hat-trick.
Race Details
2026 Punchestown Champion Hurdle Details
When is the Punchestown Champion Hurdle?
The Boodles Champion Hurdle at the 2026 Punchestown Festival is scheduled to take place on Friday, 1st May, 2026 at 6.40 pm.
Where is the Punchestown Champion Hurdle?
The Punchestown Champion Hurdle is held at Punchestown Racecourse in County Kildare, Ireland.
Who is the favourite for the 2026 Punchestown Champion Hurdle?
Lossiemouth is the favourite for the 2026 Punchestown Champion Hurdle. The mare is trained by Willie Mullins and will be ridden by jockey Paul Townend.
Here, we rank all seven runners in reverse order to assess which rivals are rated best of the rest. First, the odds for Friday’s feature race.
Odds
Punchestown Champion Hurdle Odds
Horse | Odds | Chance |
|---|---|---|
Lossiemouth | 2/5 | 71.4% |
William Munny | 5/1 | 16.7% |
Golden Ace | 10/1 | 9.1% |
Anzadam | 12/1 | 7.7% |
Wilful | 12/1 | 7.7% |
Absurde | 40/1 | 2.4% |
Glen Kiln | 50/1 | 2% |
Tips
Punchestown Champion Hurdle Tips: All Seven Runners Ranked
7. Glen Kiln – 50/1
Stays further than two miles and went past two better-fancied opponents when finishing a distant second behind Lossiemouth in the Morgiana last November but could be run off his feet on this week’s much sounder surface.
6. Absurde – 40/1
Decent ground won’t be a worry for this former Ebor winner and three-time Melbourne Cup contender on the Flat, but he has been below par in two outings over timber since returning from his last trip to Australia.
5. Wilful – 12/1
This seven-year-old has always been held in high regard by the O’Neills and now appears fully matured mentally and physically, landing valuable handicap wins at Ascot and Cheltenham either side of a rock-solid Windsor second.
Deserves this chance to test his mettle in deeper waters and A J O’Neill said: “He’s a dream horse really. He tries really hard and he’s progressed really nicely, especially this season. He’s just a pleasure to have.”
4. Golden Ace – 10/1
Jeremy Scott’s star mare travelled to Punchestown off the back of a surprise success in the Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham last season and proved that victory was no fluke by running on well to finish second to State Man in this race, before again upsetting the odds in the Fighting Fifth this term.
Golden Ace finished fifth in her Prestbury Park defence and then placed fourth over two and a half miles at Liverpool, so this will be three tough assignments in quick succession, but cheekpieces may help and Scott insisted: “I’ve been very happy with her since Aintree actually, all good.”
3. William Munny – 5/1
Has not been seen in competitive action since finishing second to Kopek Des Bordes in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at last year’s Cheltenham Festival but Barry Connell has a happy knack of bringing horses back from a long lay-off in fine spirits.
Giving 7lb away to Lossiemouth is obviously a tall order and the owner-trainer admitted his eight-year-old will be rusty early on, but he did add: “I think he’ll certainly be fit enough to do himself justice.”
2. Anzadam – 12/1
Having shown plenty of promise in an injury-curtailed first campaign for Mullins, this French import started out well enough this season with second place in the Fighting Fifth before racing too keenly in the December Hurdle at Leopardstown.
Anzadam has subsequently disappointed under Harry Cobden and Patrick Mullins in the Irish and Cheltenham Champion Hurdles, but we just feel new pilot Danny Mullins may be the man to get the best out of him via a gentler approach.
1. Lossiemouth – 2/5
Mullins has already seen star performers Il Etait Temps and Gaelic Warrior reproduce their excellent Cheltenham form at this festival and many will see this wonder mare as a banker bet to follow suit.
Lossiemouth has a 100 per cent record from three previous visits to Punchestown and returns after putting up what was probably a career-best performance when brushing aside old rival Brighterdaysahead in the Champion Hurdle at Prestbury Park.
All the evidence suggests it will be a big surprise if the brilliant grey does not round off another excellent campaign with an 11th Grade One success.
Punchestown Champion Hurdle Predictions
Punchestown Champion Hurdle Predictions
1st. Lossiemouth
2nd. Anzadam
3rd. William Munny
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