The 2025 Princess Royal National Hunt Chase: Stats, trends and replays

Grade: Grade Two. Course: Old Course What Distance? 3m 5f 201yd.

Prize-money: 

Ages: For 5yo+ Weights & Allowances: (0-145 handicap for novices)

Sponsor: None

A series of significant changes to the Cheltenham Festival race programme were announced in September 2024 as the track seeks to improve competitiveness at the National Hunt highlight.

These changes included National Hunt Chase, which has been contested by amateur riders, being open to professionals and to become a novice handicap chase for horses rated 0-145.

Jon Pullin, head of racing and clerk of the course at Cheltenham, said: “We have had to acknowledge that due to the restrictions that were previously applied to the race, there was a limited pool of riders available to ride in it, so this looks the right opportunity to open it up to professionals as well.

“Amateur jockeys are a key part of the Festival and we are obviously keen to ensure they continue to have opportunities to ride over the four days. Both the Fulke Walwyn Kim Muir Handicap Chase and St James’s Place Festival Hunters’ Chase will continue to be restricted to amateurs.

“It is hoped that by creating two novice handicap chases, we will have two competitive races with large fields and encourage the top novice chasers of the season to go down the Graded route in the My Pension Expert Arkle and the Brown Advisory.”

Therefore, plenty of the previous stats and trends are no longer valid. But some may still prove helpful.

Gordon Elliott has had 15 runners in the National Hunt Chase in its former guise. Four have won, another two have finished second and the other nine have failed to complete. His winners have been Chicago Grey (5-1), Cause Of Causes (8-1), Tiger Roll (16-1) and Ravenhill (12-1) so you would be showing a healthy profit if you had backed him blind.

And in 2021, he prepared Galvin, who won, and Escaria Ten, who was third, but they ran for other trainers for well-documented reasons. So, you could say he’s had five winners from 17 runners. All of Elliott’s winners (not Galvin) had been beaten on their previous start and two of them, Chicago Grey and Ravenill, had suffered a fall earlier in the campaign. 

Chicago Grey, Teaforthree and Back In Focus were all winning favourites from 2011 to 2013 but Gaillard Du Mesnil was a rare market leader two years ago, and he was possibly fortunate to collect. Indeed, seven of the last 11 have failed to place. 

15 of the past 18 winners had previously won at least once over three miles or more.

Cheltenham experience is certainly useful. Since 2010, 12 of the 15 winners had previously run at the track with the top Irish contenders boasting strong previous Festival form.

Now in its 164th year, the National Hunt Chase will be named in honour of HRH The Princess Royal for the first time, a permanent move now established for the oldest race at the Cheltenham Festival. Up until 2020, this was a stamina-sapping four-miler, but the race now takes place over the shorter distance of 3m6f.

The contest was one of three restricted to amateur riders, along with the Kim Muir and the Foxhunter. But that is now no longer the case.

The race conditions have changed over time and on the back of a very strong 2016 renewal (Minella Rocco and Native River finishing second and third in the Gold Cup subsequently) the historic contest was upgraded to a Grade Two event in 2017, having previously held Listed status.

However, it is now a 0-145 contest.

Because of its nature, horses that do well in the National Hunt Chase have often gone on to run well in the Grand National the following month, with recent winners Teaforthree (2012) and Cause Of Causes (2015) both going on to finish in the first three at Aintree. The 2017 winner Tiger Roll went on to land the iconic race at Aintree in 2018 before memorably following up in 2019.

Gordon Elliott (four wins) and Jonjo O’Neill (five wins this century) are two trainers with superb records in the race.

The running in 2024 was named in honour of the late Maureen Mullins.

We didn't know it at the time, but Corbetts Cross scooped the last National Hunt Chase before it was altered to become a 0-145 novices' handicap. Both he and Embassy Gardens, the runner-up, came into the contest rated 150. 

Trainer Emmet Mullins recorded an emotional success in the race run in honour of his grandmother. Maureen Mullins, the matriarch of a great racing dynasty had sadly passed away the previous month aged 94. Mullins said: “It was a great honour and a privilege for The Jockey Club to name the race after Mrs Mullins, granny, and it’s extra special to win it. 

“We were always very hopeful, and I suppose he had the form in the book to be second in the Arkle today. That’s a special test, but Derek got him into a great rhythm and he showed his true colours. The ground was a bit of a worry, even though he’d won on heavy, but having Derek was a big advantage. Last year (when he ducked out at the last) is long forgotten now and it was great it all came together so impressively." 

O’Connor added: “Emmett has done a wonderful job. He has prepared him to perfection. We had a mishap in Fairyhouse and I’d take the blame. I made the decision during the race to go for a gap, and it closed on me and we had a mishap. It was a bad preparation and it was my fault, but Emmett has recouped it and he turned up here in great shape. It is a better quality race than it used to be, and has a higher standard of horses and jockeys. It was actually a very good race today." 

Patrick Mullins won the race for the second year in a row aboard his father's dour stayer but was possibly fortunate.

The Willie Mullins-trained seven-year-old had solid form claims and went off  the 10-11 favourite but Mahler Mission was in the lead amd moving strongly turning from home.

However, John McConnell's came down at the second-last and that left the door open for Gaillard Du Mesnil to master Chemical Energy in the closing stages.

Willie Mullins said: "I think we were a bit fortunate to be honest with John McConnell's horse falling, but that's racing." 

Willie Mullins - the most successful trainer in Cheltenham Festival history - had to wait until the lucky last to get off for the mark for this year's meeting with son Patrick doing the steering aboard Stattler. 

The jockey bided his time on the seven-year-old as favourite Run Wild Fred set the pace in the stamina-sapping race and the Mullins snr remarked on Patrick's coolness in the saddle. 

The trainer said: "Certainly my nerves were in bits going round the whole time! Patrick got him into a rhythm, got him settled, got him jumping and produced him at the right time. 

"I think Stattler is a good jumper and that's why Patrick nominated him early in the season for this race. He was thinking of himself the whole time, which is the right thing to do, it worked out! He probably has enough class win over two and a half miles or three miles." 

Galvin (7-2) completed a long-term plan by landing the marathon chase for new trainer Ian Ferguson under jockey Jack Kennedy for owner Ronnie Bartlett. 

In mid-field for much of the race, he was smuggled into contention and, after jumping the last in front, ran out a fairly cosy winner by a length a half from Next Destination (3-1) in second with Escaria Ten (11-4F) the same distance behind in third. The front three finished well clear of Snow Leopardess in fourth. 

Kennedy said after his day-one double: “It’s a shame the amateurs can’t ride, but I’d be a Cheltenham Festival winner less for it. I’ll take it anyway!” 

Galvin had mostly been prepared by Gordon Elliott and his team, but Ian Ferguson assumed the care of this horse shortly before the meeting after Elliott’s well-publicised suspension. 

“They’ve done all the hard work. It’s brilliant for Ian Ferguson as well,” said the rider. 

The ten-year-old Ravenhill (12-1) justified the late switch from the Kim Muir and put experience to very good use to continue the fine record of trainer Gordon Elliott in this race, prevailing under a strong drive from Jamie Codd to secure the brilliant amateur a third victory in this historic contest. 

Ravenhill pulled out a fine jump at the last which carried him to the line two-and-a-quarter lengths ahead of the brave Lord Du Mesnil (11-2) in second, with the third Lamanver Pippin a whopping 28 lengths further back in third. 

"This race has got a great history and it means a lot that it's here," said Codd. "For amateurs, we only have a few opportunities. 

"Cutting the race back by two furlongs isn't the end of the world, we still jump plenty and it only cuts out two fences. 

"To win here means a lot - it's Cheltenham and it's the Olympics of our sport. If you don't enjoy riding winners around here then there's something wrong with you." 

A controversial renewal. Only four finished after an attritional renewal and three jockeys were banned for a total of 37 days. 

The stewards ruled Declan Lavery Noel McParlan had “continued in the race when it appeared to be contrary to the horses’s welfare”. 

The former finished third on Jerrysback, while McOParlan's mount fell at the final fence when in third. 

Le Breuil took the honours under Jamie Codd from Discoroa. Sadly, Ballyward, the favourite, suffered a fatal fall. 

Testing ground made this a particularly stamina-sapping renewal and by the finish only six of the 16 runners had completed without mishap.

It developed into a fabulous duel between Rathvinden, trained by Willie Mullins and ridden by his son Patrick, and Ms Parfois, a mare blessed with bottomless energy. 

Rathvinden, sent off at 9-2, tanked through the race and looked like the 150-rated chaser might win easily as he challenged on the bridle, but he had only half a length to spare at the line and was running on fumes by the finish. 

The winner needed some medical attention and was unable to return to the winner's enclosure, but was later fine. His jockey picked up a whip ban. 

Jury Duty went off the 4-1 favourite but was already a spent force when unseating Jamie Codd two out. 

Tiger Roll, winner of the 2014 Triumph Hurdle, provided trainer Gordon Elliott with a treble on the opening day of the 2017 Cheltenham Festival by taking his field apart under a positive ride from Lisa O’Neill. 

The son of Authorized has never been the most predictable of animals but it was clear from an early stage that this was a going day and he survived a few mistakes to forge clear from three out and make it three wins from five starts at the Gloucestershire venue. 

The 2016 edition of the amateur riders’ event was a deep one in terms of quality and in terms of strength of the form, with the overall gallop a searching one. 

Minella Rocco was held up well off the strong pace by crack amateur Derek O’Connor before creeping into contention from the fourth last. 

In front going to the last, Minella Rocco found plenty up the hill to repel the hugely progressive Native River by a length and a quarter and open his chasing account at the fifth attempt. 

It was a performance that marked him down as a genuine Gold Cup candidate for the future and he proved that by finishing second to Sizing John in the blue riband event 12 months later. 

Cause Of Causes had unfinished business at the Cheltenham Festival after looking rather unfortunate not to win the 2014 Kim Muir Chase and he made amends the following season by coming from well off the strong pace under Jamie Codd to win his first race over fences on the biggest stage of all. 

He has been a standing dish at the Festival since then, adding the 2016 Kim Muir and the 2017 Cross Country Chase to his CV before going on to produce a career-best effort when second to One For Arthur in the Grand National at Aintree. 

Midnight Prayer provided trainer Alan King with his second National Hunt Chase victory when holding on bravely to defeat the significantly higher-rated Shotgun Paddy by a neck in a bunched-finish (only around four lengths separating first seven home) to the 2014 renewal. 

Despite having form on testing ground, drying conditions really suited the son of Midnight Legend (as it does for many of his progeny) and he produced a career-best effort on the day. 

Willie Mullins won the National Hunt Chase as a jockey but had never as a trainer before Back In Focus, ridden by his son Patrick, put the record straight by pulling the race out of the fire in the final 75 yards, to the relief of his many backers (sent off well-backed 9-4 favourite). 

He was a horse who relished testing ground and the drying ground at Cheltenham almost caught him out, indeed he still had six lengths to make up on the leaders heading to the last fence, but he was a horse blessed with huge stamina reserves and they kicked in just in time. 

He was a talented chaser, winning a Grade One as a novice, but his racing career ended prematurely (only raced nine times under Rules). 

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