Unibet Champion Hurdle (Grade 1)

LIFE in the shadow of a monster presence like Constitution Hill is an unenviable task for most horses, but the ultra reliable and metronomically consistent State Man is managing to amass a sublime CV of big-race wins, including a first Unibet Champion Hurdle in his usual unassuming style.

It wasn’t the type of jaw-dropping display that won the race 12 months earlier yet there was always an air of inevitability that the Willie Mullins-trained 2/5 favourite would pull out enough to overhaul a spirited effort from runner-up Irish Point, who fully justified connections’ decision to come here instead of the Stayers’ Hurdle.

Paul Townend spoke at the start of the season about how the Champion Hurdle was the biggest omission on his CV that he dearly wanted to put to right, and - with his most reliable partner - he notched a breakthrough win to complete the full set of championship races at the Cheltenham Festival. This also represented the 125th Grade 1 win of his career.

State Man was making it nine Grade 1 wins in his last 10 appearances - the only defeat coming at the hands of the absent reigning champion here in 2023. Joe and Marie Donnelly’s star has now won more Grade 1s in the last year and 10 months than Constitution Hill has had starts under rules in his career.

“It went very smoothly and Paul rode him with such confidence,” Mullins said after the length and a quarter success provided him with his fifth Champion Hurdle.

“It just shows that when jockeys are riding in the zone they can make other things happen that they want to happen. There’s no wow factor with State Man, and you don’t go wow when you look at him either, but he does what it says on the tin. He’s that type of horse.

Testing ground

“It’s very hard to be wow in that [testing] ground, but he’s a good solid, sound horse and he just gives his running every time.

“I think it’s as soft, or as heavy, as I’ve ever seen it. I haven’t seen it like this for years at Cheltenham, but he has oodles of stamina and I don’t think it worked against him. We’ll stick to the plan and go to Punchestown as usual.”

Townend had been runner-up in four of the last six Champion Hurdles, so victory here was particularly sweet for the champion jockey.

“He’s an old favourite of mine and he deserves a big day like this,” said the winning rider.

“He’s a champion back home, only Constitution Hill was too good for him here last year. He deserved his day in the sun. This was the one race that was kind of missing here. I suppose back in my younger days, I had a close association with Hurricane Fly, so it was a race that meant a lot to me, and I grew up watching the likes of Istabraq, so to put my name on that list is special.”

On runner-up Irish Point, his rider Jack Kennedy said: “He ran a blinder and lost nothing in defeat. I was happy with the choice of race and he ran great.”