Honeysuckle Closes In On Cheltenham Champion Hurdle Favouritism After Leopardstown Win

on February 7, 2021 at 12:44 pm

Honeysuckle is within striking distance of being a Cheltenham Champion Hurdle favourite after romping to victory in the Irish equivalent at Leopardstown on Saturday.

Henry De Bromhead’s mare had a strong advantage as far out as the penultimate hurdle under Rachael Blackmore as a commanding ten-length victory over Abacadabras extended her unblemished record to ten.

A Champion Hurdle bid was already being eyed by connections before the convincing display and BoyleSports have now slashed her chances into 5/2 from 11/2, putting her hot on the heels of 2/1 favourite Epatante.

A Champion Hurdle bid is surely an irresistible prospect now for Honeysuckle after such a conclusive performance and antepost punters are absolutely buzzing about her chances.

Chacun Pour Soi earlier confirmed very strong claims for a Cheltenham Festival victory with an eye-catching win in the Dublin Chase to go odds-on to follow up in this year’s Champion Chase.

Favourite backers were not let down as the Willie Mullins-trained nine-year-old took control before the final flight before going to score impressively eight lengths clear of Joseph O’Brien’s Fakir D’oudaries. BoyleSports immediately went 5/6 from even money about a Champion Chase victory but it has since shortened further into 8/11 with Altior a distant second favourite at 7/1.

At Sandown, Native River rolled back the years with an impressive display in the Cotswold Chase and is now a 14/1 shot from 28/1 to become a dual Gold Cup winner having landed the race back in 2018.