Who Have Been the Most Successful Trainers in the Fred Winter Juvenile Handicap Hurdle?

Believe it or not, we have now had 15 years of the Fred Winter Novices’ Juvenile Handicap Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival. This was added to the programme when the premier National Hunt meeting expanded in 2005, so that there was a race for four-year-olds who weren’t thought quite good enough for the Grade 1 Triumph Hurdle.

Now run under the name of sponsorship of jewellery makers Boodles, there is enough history behind the Fred Winter to look at certain trainer trends. David Pipe, for example, has had three seconds in the race since he last won it back in 2007.

If the plan was to run Adagio in this year’s renewal, then his handicap mark has been blown by winning the Grade 1 Finale Juvenile Hurdle at Chepstow on Welsh Grand National day. Punters may have to look elsewhere.

Nicky Henderson usually plays his cards close to his chest in this division, so that may be why he’s had two seconds in the last four years. We won’t see the best Seven Barrows inmates out until nearer Cheltenham.

Irish handlers have won the last three renewals of the Fred Winter, and the middle of those went to young trainer Joseph O’Brien with Band Of Outlaws in 2019. He has two Flat coverts from father Aidan in Flying Scotsman and Palm Beach for the most recent winning owner of the race, the mighty JP McManus, as possible this year.

The other Emerald Isle trainer to enjoy recent success in the Fred Winter is not Willie Mullins but Gordon Elliott. In fact, he has had horses finish at least second in each of the last three years and won the race twice in that period (and three times overall).

Elliott saddled three of the first four home in the 2020 Fred Winter, so don’t be surprised if tips & predictions for the Juvenile Novices’ Handicap Hurdle focus on his horses as the yard looks strong in this division this season. Duffle Coat, a Grade 2 winner at Cheltenham already, is an obvious contender from this stable but may have grander ambitions by running in the Triumph instead.

Despite the strong performances of Irish runners in recent years, two-thirds of previous Fred Winter renewals have gone to a trainer based in Britain. Between 2006 and 2017, only two winners were trained outside of the UK.

 

Sharing the record with Elliott for most Fred Winter victories is the master handler of Ditcheat himself, Paul Nicholls despite the fact he hasn’t had a horse placed in the last four years. He managed consecutive one-twos in 2015 and 2016, and had four seconds in a row from 2013.

Nicholls has typical French imports Hell Red and Houx Gris as potential entries, but both have something to prove. The former looked potentially top class when winning at Chepstow, but disappointed in the Grade 2 race won by Duffle Coat when pulled up after being sent off favourite.

Houx Gris, meanwhile, was pitched in at the deep end on his debut for Nicholls and came third behind Adagio. There could be more to come from both, depending on how generous the handicapper feels.