Mares’ Hurdle Stats & Trends 2025

The Mares’ Hurdle has been a slightly divisive addition to the Cheltenham Festival schedule, and that promises to be no different in 2025.

Brighterdaysahead could head to the Grade One instead of a tilt for the Champion Hurdle, while Lossiemouth could also end up against her own sex.

The Mares’ Hurdle is run on the opening day of the Festival, and is a Grade One contest over two miles and four furlongs on the Old Course. Digging deep into the stats and trends could help identify the most likely winner of the race.

Lossiemouth ended a curse in the race last year when becoming the first mare since Apple’s Jade in 2017 to win at five-year-olds.

However, the stats still indicate that runners between six and seven is the best angle worth following, with five of the last seven winners being aged between that range. Honeysuckle is the only other runner to buck that trend after winning aged nine in 2023.

Unlike the Champion Hurdle, the Mares’ Hurdle is run over a slightly longer distance. Therefore, it can often catch horses that have been campaigned over two miles out.

The trends show that eleven of the last 12 winners have had at least two previous runs over the trip, while the same number of winners since 2013 have had at least one win over two miles and four.

Experience of Cheltenham is a major plus for any runner in the Mares’ Hurdle, with the stats showing that eight of the last 12 winners have run at the track on at least one occasion.

Meanwhile, four victors in the Mares’ Hurdle since 2013 have had at least one win at the home of jumps racing. The latter of those trends could be detrimental to Brighterdaysahead, who was beaten in the Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle in 2024 despite being sent off as a very hot favourite.

The Mares’ Hurdle has been an excellent opportunity for the girls to showcase their talents, but high-quality stars throughout its history have won the race.

That is reflected in the fact that ten of the last 12 winners of the race have had at least a Grade Three win to their name before winning at the Festival. Lossiemouth and Honeysuckle were both Grade One winners before their respective wins in 2024 and 2023.

The trends also indicate that hurdling experience goes a long way in finding a solid Mares’ Hurdle contender.

Eleven of the winners of the race since 2013 have made at least six starts over the smaller obstacles, with the same number of runners having recorded at least three wins over hurdles.

July Flower could be an overlooked contender in the market for the Henry De Bromhead team. The six-year-old mare was a proven graded performer in France last year, finishing within two lengths of the highly-talented Losange Bleu in the G3 Prix Hypothese and G1 Grand Course de Haies d’Auteuil.

She made a winning start to life in Ireland in late December, beating a field consisting of Kala Conti and Jetara in the G3 Mares Hurdle by three lengths at Leopardstown.

She is one that will improve on a more stamina-sapping track, and is ground versatile, with victories being recorded on good-to-soft, heavy, and good ground.