Premier Kelso Hurdle

The Premier Kelso Hurdle is a Grade 2 race for novices over two and a quarter miles.

It takes place in late February or early March. In recent seasons the trend has been for Kelso Hurdle winners to miss Cheltenham in favour of Aintree.

Notable past winners include Marello (1997), Master Tern (2000), Knockara Beau (2009) and Clever Cookie (2014).

Find out more also the Kelso Hurdle:

Race Overview – The Kelso Hurdle

Horses must be four years of age or older to compete in the Grade 2 Premier Kelso Hurdle, a National Hunt hurdle race.

There are 10 hurdles to clear during the race, which is raced at Kelso over a distance of around 2 miles and 2 furlongs (2 miles, 2 furlongs, and 25 yards, or 3,644 metres).

The novice hurdlers’ race is slated to take place in late February or early March each year.

If you are looking for more racing tips for events taking place at Kelso Racecourse then check out our Kelso racing tips page.

For all Kelso races, our finest racing tipsters give free horse racing tips!

Premier Kelso Hurdle 2024 Result

Check out the latest result from this race:

Famous Premier Kelso Hurdle Winners

The Premier Kelso Hurdle was first run in 1990 with victory going to Ambuscade, trained by George Moore and ridden by Mark Dwyer. High-quality staying novices to win in the 1990’s include Morceli, trained by Howard Johnson, and Mary Reveley’s prolific winners Penny A Day (1996) and Marello (1997).

Jonjo O’Neill and Tony Dobbin teamed up to win with Master Tern in 2000. He landed a gamble in the County Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival next time out, returning the 9-2 favourite. Knockara Beau won in 2009 and would go on to become a stable stalwart for George Charlton. He famously won the Cleeve Hurdle at Cheltenham in 2014 at the age of eleven.

Clever Cookie (2014) was a consistent dual-purpose horse trained by Peter Niven. He won 11 of his 42 races under rules including the Group 2 Yorkshire Cup in 2016. He had earlier finished runner-up in the Group 2 British Champions Long Distance Cup at Ascot.

Key Premier Kelso Hurdle Trials

Nearly half of the last eleven winners had won at least once at Kelso previously.

Seven of the last eleven winners had won on their previous outing, although they came from a variety of novice races across Great Britain.

Four of the last eleven Premier Kelso Hurdle winners ran in the Mersey Novices Hurdle at Aintree.

My Drogo won both races for Dan and Harry Skelton in 2021.

Three winners ran in the Top Novices Hurdle at the Grand National meeting but only one of them managed a place.

Premier Kelso Hurdle Betting Trends

Four of the last eleven winners returned favourite; Clever Cookie (2014), Le Prezien (2016), Mount Mews (2017) and My Drogo (2021).

There have also been three shock winners, the longest-priced winner in recent times being Bold Sir Brian at 20-1 in 2011.

Mwaleshi (2013) and Nells Son (2022) both returned at 16-1 when winning this event.

Horses aged five and six have the best recent record in this race, accounting for 8 of the last 11 winners.

The last four-year-old to win was Leviticus in 1998, trained by Tom Tate and ridden by Jason Callaghan.

Premier Kelso Hurdle – Top Trainers and Jockeys

Howard Johnson trained the winner of this race on four occasions; Morceli (1994), Wills Telmar (1995), Covent Garden (2003) and Mephisto (2005).

Mary Reveley won it three times in a five-year spell from 1993 to 1997 while Nicky Richards has won it twice, emulating his father Gordon.

Neale Doughty and Peter Niven both rode the winner three times.

Betting on the Premier Kelso Hurdle

The Premier Kelso Hurdle has produced some high-class winners over the years, several of them going on to succeed over fences.

The race is unlikely to provide clues for the Cheltenham Festival but the winner is usually worth noting for the future.

Premier Kelso Hurdle Facts

• The Premier Kelso Hurdle is a National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older.
• The race is run on Kelso Racecourse’s left-handed course over a distance of 2 miles and 2 furlongs (3,621 metres), and during its running, there are ten hurdles to be jumped.
• The Premier Kelso Hurdle is a Grade 2 race, and it is currently sponsored by Premier Inn.

Summary of the Premier Kelso Hurdle

Thank you for reading our Premier Kelso Hurdle guide.

We have looked at odds, stats, history, tips and more, so you have all the info you need if placing a bet or simply watching the race!

Related March Horses Races