Long Distance Hurdle

James Dooley avatar

Written By:

Updated:

The Long Distance Hurdle is a Grade 2 race over three miles at Newbury.

The Long Distance Hurdle takes place on Friday 1st December 2023.

The race is an important trial for the Stayers Hurdle which takes place at Cheltenham.

Find out more about the Long Distance Hurdle:

Long Distance Hurdle

Race Overview

Horses must be four years of age or older to compete in the Grade 2 Long Distance Hurdle, a National Hunt hurdle contest in Great Britain.

Twelve hurdles must be cleared during the race, which is run at Newbury over a distance of around 3 miles (3 miles and 52 yards, or 4,876 metres). Every year, the race is planned for late November or early December.

Long Distance Hurdle Previous Result

Check out the latest result from this race:

Previous Long Distance Hurdle Winners

Here are the previous winners of the Long Distance Hurdle.

YearHorseAgeJockeyTrainer
2013Celestial Halo9Daryl JacobPaul Nicholls
2014Medinas7Richard JohnsonAlan King
2015Thistlecrack7Tom ScudamoreColin Tizzard
2016Unowhatimeanharry8Barry GeraghtyHarry Fry
2017Beer Goggles6Richard JohnsonRichard Woollacott
2018Unowhatimeanharry10Barry GeraghtyHarry Fry
2019Paisley Park7Aidan ColemanEmma Lavelle
2020Thyme Hill6Richard JohnsonPhilip Hobbs
2021Thomas Darby8Sean BowenOlly Murphy
2022Champ10Jonjo O’Neill JrNicky Henderson

Key Long Distance Hurdle Trials

This is often the first start of the season for leading stayers. Three winners of the Liverpool Hurdle at Aintree have reappeared here over the past twelve seasons and all were successful. Eight of the last twelve winners went to Ascot in December for the Long Walk Hurdle and four of them won. Big Buck’s won both races for three consecutive seasons from 2009 to 2011. Thistlecrack and Unowhatimeanharry also won both races in 2015 and 2016 respectively.

The Stayers Hurdle is the obvious target at the Cheltenham Festival for Long Distance Hurdle winners. Inglis Drever, Big Buck’s, Thistlecrack and Unowhatimeanharry all went on to win the big race at the Cheltenham Festival after winning here.

There is no clear age bias in the Long Distance Hurdle with winners ranging from the age of five up to ten. Unowhatimeanharry became the oldest winner in the history of the race at the age of ten in 2018. Can on Target (1991) and Historic (2001) are the only two winning five-year-olds.

Big Buck’s won as the odds-on favourite in the Long Distance Hurdle for four consecutive years. Only Inglis Drever (2007) and Unowhatimeanharry (2018) have obliged as the market leader since. The biggest shock in the history of the race was the 40-1 success of Beer Goggles in 2017.

Previous course form is a key factor for your Long Distance Hurdle bets. Most recent winners had at least one previous victory at Newbury. An official rating of 150 or higher is usually required to win this race. Big Buck’s won as the highest rated stayer of all-time on a mark of 174.

Who is the most winning trainer of the Long Distance Hurdle?

The most successful trainer in the Long Distance Hurdle is Paul Nicholls with five wins.

Here are the most winning trainers of the Long Distance Hurdle.

TrainerR-W-PWinEW
Paul Nicholls10-5-8-0.60+4.42
Nicky Henderson6-2-4+6.38+5.45
Harry Fry5-2-3+3.25+1.54
Alan King8-1-3+1.00+0.57
Emma Lavelle7-1-3-5.47-2.65
Philip Hobbs3-1-2+1.50+1.30
Olly Murphy2-1-1+6.00+3.38
Nigel Twiston-Davies7-0-2-7.00-5.35
Rebecca Curtis5-0-0-5.00-5.00
Nick Williams4-0-0-4.00-3.00

Long Distance Hurdle – Top Trainers and Jockeys

Paul Nicholls won this race for five successive seasons with Big Buck’s (2009-2012) and Celestial Halo (2013). Inglis Drever registered three straight wins for Howard Johnson (2005 to 2007) with Baracouda (2003, 2004) and Unowhatimeanharry (2016, 2018) scoring twice for Francois Doumen and Harry Fry respectively. The last Irish-trained winner was What A Question in 1996 for Mouse Morris.

Tony McCoy leads the all-time jockey standings in this race with five victories; Deano’s Beano (1999, 2000), Baracouda (2004), Duc de Regniere (2008) and Big Buck’s (2010). Ruby Walsh and Richard Johnson both won the Long Distance Hurdle on three occasions.

Popular Questions

When is the Long Distance Hurdle?

The Long Distance Hurdle takes place on Friday 1st December.

The 15:00 race is held at Newbury Racecourse.

What are important facts about Long Distance Hurdle?

Here are some important facts about Long Distance Hurdle:

  • The Long Distance Hurdle is run at Newbury Racecourse, Great Britain
  • The Long Distance Hurdle is for horses aged 4 and over
  • The Long Distance Hurdle is a National Hunt Hurdle race in Great Britain
  • The Long Distance Hurdle distance is about 3 miles

Summary of the Long Distance Hurdle

Thank you for reading our Long Distance Hurdle guide.

You can check out the Newbury horse racing tips page for our tips on this race or take a look at more horse racing in December.