Epatante wins Champion Hurdle with impressive run

Epatante stormed home to be crowned the Champion Hurdler of Cheltenham  2020 in the feature race of day one of the festival. The 6 year old horse provided jockey Barry Geraghty with his 4th victory in the race as well as a record eighth victory for trainer Nicky Henderson.

The mare shortened to 2/1 before the race and was strongly backed in the market. The 6 year old faced off against a large field of 16 other horses however the field deemed to be substantially weak for a Grade 1 Champion Hurdle.

Epatante travelled well throughout the race under jockey Geraghty, maintaining a comfortable position near the front of the field. The 6 year old bolted over the last fence to overtake leader Darver Star and sprinted home easily on the home straight.

The win saw trainer Nicky Henderson complete the double on the day with the trainer landing another Group 1 win in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle with Shiskin. The win see’s Henderson as the most decorated winning trainer with 66 winners, one clear of Willie Mullins.

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