Unibet Champion Hurdle ante-post tip: Johnny Ward's 11-1 fancy for Cheltenham

Tipping

State Man

ante-post for the 2025 Unibet Champion Hurdle might seem completely mad, but bear with me! 

He’s a best-priced 11-1, for a start, and I can’t ever remember him missing a race due to an injury or setback. 

If all the leading protagonists turn up here, then you would have to say he’s very unlikely to win, but that’s not going to happen as it’s unlikely that

Constitution Hill

, Brighterdaysahead and

Lossiemouth

will all run. 

We’re just over two months away from the opening day showpiece at the Cheltenham Festival on Tuesday, March 11, but Constitution Hill has only been seen once in over 12 months, and I wasn’t overly impressed with his win in the Ladbrokes Christmas Hurdle at Kempton on Boxing Day. 

Brighterdaysahead has the option of running in the Mares’ Hurdle instead, which has been suggested as her likely target, for now, and we’re also not sure which race will run in, so I would be very surprised if they all three clashed in the Unibet Champion Hurdle this year. 

However, State Man looks sure to show up, and the only negative is his effort in the Neville Hotels Hurdle at Leopardstown over Christmas which was the first poor run of his career. That was a bit of a mad race, though, and while he was below his best, the pace was frantic, and he was out of his comfort zone a long way out. 

If State Man shows up, as he has done at the Cheltenham Festival for the past three years, then I’m sure he will be in the first three, so he’s an each-way ante-post bet for me, especially with the doubts about those above him in the market. 

Basically, he is around 11-5 to finish in the first three, and there’s every chance he will be shorter than 11-1 in the betting on the day. 

I like the value of this bet each-way, and while there is 7-1 available in the NRNB market, I would prefer to take the 11-1. 

Ante-post selection:

2025 Unibet Champion Hurdle: STATE MAN each-way at a general 11-1.