Racing TV French Champion Hurdle: runner-by-runner guide and tip

France's joint-richest hurdle race, the Racing TV Grande Course de Haies d'Auteuil, takes centre stage in the capital on Saturday and is followed by three further Grade One races the following afternoon, headlined by the blue-riband Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris.

This year's feature hurdle contest, commonly known as the French Champion Hurdle, is a strong renewal, despite the fact last year's winner El Clavel misses the race. He has not been seen since sustaining an injury in the autumn.

What we do have, however, is the highest-rated hurdler in France in the shape of the 2024 winner and last year's runner-up Losange Bleu. The striking black seven-year-old is sure to be popular with local racegoers having collected four Grade One races at the Parisian track so far, plus a further eight Graded prizes.

The race wouldn't be complete without Anglo-Irish runners and this season the international challenge is led by Home By The Lee, winner of both the Stayers' and Liverpool Hurdle at Cheltenham and Aintree.

He is joined by Lucinda Russell and Michael Scudamore's star mare Apple Away, plus the Paul Nicholls-trained Henri The Second.

The most fascinating runner comes from the home contingent, namely the outstanding Theleme. The son of Sidestep won this race in 2023, plus has another four top-level triumphs on his CV, but is making up for lost time having missed the entire 2024 and 2025 seasons.

Noel George and Amanda Zetterholm are currently in second position in the French Trainers' Championship (Jan-Dec), comfortably ahead of National Hunt stalwarts Francois Nicolle, Guillaume Macaire and Arnaud Chaille-Chaille at this stage.

The Avilly-Saint-Léonard-based duo have two chances of winning back-to-back Racing TV French Champion Hurdles courtesy of the James Reveley-riddenIllusion Machine, plus It's Win O'Clock.

Below is a guide to each runner and a predicted finishing order for the €363,000 feature.

Consistent performer but has not won since March 2024, albeit he missed most of the 2025 season.

Reappeared with a very respectable second behind Theleme (also on the comeback trail and a leading fancy for this race) in a conditions race in March and filled that same position in slightly weaker race last month.

The six-year-old has come up short in four attempts at Graded level and this looks a bridge too far again, plus this step up in trip to an extended 3m1f (5100m) is a step into the unknown having not been seen over much further than 2m3f so far.

Ran away with a competitive-looking Listed handicap hurdle here in March and ran another good race when third in similar heat last time.

However, this form is still well short of Champion Hurdle standard – he is rated just 64.0 by the French handicapper (BHA 128) and has ten lengths to find with the re-opposing Illusion Machine, whom he meets on worse terms.

He is a likeable horse from a likeable trainer, but won’t be winning this.

A second runner in the race for Lossiemouth’s former trainer, Style d’Emirs was a winner on the Flat at Marseille in November. He then followed that up with two more victories on the south coast in the Auteuil off-season over the winter, landing two handicap hurdles at Cagnes-sur-Mer to bring up a hat-trick.

He has failed to get his head in front since, arriving here off the back of three Auteuil defeats in deeper waters, but he has actually progressed during this time, finishing second in a very strong Listed hurdle in March, fourth in a strong Grade Two Prix La Barka, and second in the Grade Two Prix Leon Rambaud four weeks ago.

There, he was comfortably beaten by the favoruite for this race, Losange Bleu, but did manage to beat Theleme into second.

He is capable of outrunning his odds, but there is no obvious reason why he can reverse form with Losange Bleu in this, though he looks progressive and is a matter of time before he wins at Graded level.

It sounds odd to say about a horse who has won five races at the highest level, but is it a case of what might have been for this hugely talented nine-year-old?

The son of Sidestep was outstanding at three, four, five and six, and looked set for a Stayer’s Hurdle bid at Cheltenham where he would have been a likely favourite, only for him to pick up an injury and miss the whole of 2024 and 2025.

A super winner of this race three years ago, Theleme reappeared after 28 months off with a win in March before his third-placed effort in Grade Two company last month.

The question is, how close to his brilliant best will he be here? He would be a hugely popular winner and is likely to be in the frame, but the nagging concern is his best days are behind him and that he could be vulnerable to a younger set of legs.

Connections of the Ditcheat-trained nine-year-old will be hoping for as much rain as possible in Paris, and it certainly won’t be good ground in any case.

Relatively lightly-raced for his age, the French-bred son of Saddler Maker is making his first start in his country of birth and could well take to these hurdles, however does he lack the required class?

He was impressive when winning a Premier Handicap in testing conditions at Sandown in late-January, but came up short in the Rendlesham on ground slightly quicker than ideal.

This is his first start since, so has a three-month absence to overcome, and would be a surprise winner, though he is sure to stay.

The magnificent veteran arrives in the Bois de Boulogne in the form of his life having won the Galmoy, Stayers’ and Liverpool hurdler this year. Can he bring up a four-timer with a third consecutive Grade One win?

He is ground versatile and a solid stayer, so there are two boxes ticked, but he did not appear totally in love with this race when sixth in 2024, comfortably behind Losange Bleu, and I’m not sure he will have enough to reverse form with that rival on his home turf having has a harder season.

This is also a deeper race than last time, although as a four-time Grade One winner, he must be respected and does not have much to find on official ratings. His yard is also, as ever, in top form.

The seven-year-old black son of Martaline is a hugely popular performer and rates the most likely winner of this race having won it in 2024 and finishing a close second 12 months ago.

The Papot family homebred has 14 wins at France’s premier track to his name, 12 of which have been Pattern races, with four at the top-level.

He signed off last year with an emphatic win in the Garde One Prix Serge Landon – Grand Prix d’Automne here over just a furlong and a half shorter and he lost little in defeat on his first run back this spring when running fellow Grade One winner Leader Sport to within a neck in the Prix La Barka, giving him 12lb.

Back to winning ways last time out, he arrives back at Auteuil in good form for a race his accomplished trainer will have been primed him for and is set for another big run.

Another seven-year-old son of Martaline, Jet Blue will be well known to British audiences having won the Grade Two Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle by six and a half lengths at Cheltenham in December 2024.

He failed to repeat that victory at the Festival itself three months later and has failed to score in any of his four subsequent starts, including when pulled-up in the Long Walk Hurdle at Ascot in December.

That said, he was the closest horse to Losange Bleu in November’s Grade One Grand Prix d’Automne and has place claims at his very best, but his remote third in a Grade Three last time leaves him with plenty to find.

A son of speedball Shalaa out a Dansili mare, Illusion Machine does not have the typical pedigree of a staying hurdler, but he has taken well to hurdles, winning four of his six starts.

A dual winner on the Flat, he ran a creditable fourth in France’s Championship four-year-old hurdle in November, the Prix Renaud du Vivier. This was just his fourth start over obstacles, though he was beaten 17 lengths by the winner and re-opposing stablemate It’s Win O’Clock.

After another fourth last year, he reappeared with a comfortable Listed win this spring. He is talented, but this demands a career best effort by some way. He does, at least, have the added assistance of last year’s winning jockey James Reveley in the saddle.

His progress last season saw him crowned Champion Four-Year-Old. He defeated the hugely talented Sain D’Esprit (who has made a fine start to his chase career) in Grade Three company in October and then beat that horse again to win the Grade One Prix Renaud du Vivier.

His reappearance in the Prix La Barka in March was disappointing, however. He beat just one of his five rivals home and finished well behind the re-opposing Losange Bleu and Style d’Emirs, and he wasn’t much better when sixth on chasing debut last month.

It’s a surprise to see him chalked up at twice the price of his stablemate Illusion Machine given last Autumn’s promise though, but it would take a leap of faith to back him to win this with something to prove after his efforts this spring, plus he has stamina to prove - though there is no doubting his underlying ability.

It is great to see Old Gold Racing’s star mare go for this valuable prize after her Listed win over fences at Perth last month.

She has a light campaign and there can be no stamina concerns for a horse who has won a Grand National Trial at Haydock (second past the post) beyond three and a half miles.

Whilst her win last time was on good ground, the more testing conditions in France should be no problem as she was a Grade One winner on soft ground when winning the Sefton at Aintree in 2023, plus she has plenty of other solid efforts on a similar surface.

The nagging concern is that she may just lack the requisite speed over the smaller obstacles to win this and has a bit to find against her male counterparts on the figures.

LOSANGE BLEU still makes appeal at 15-8 given his hugely consistent high-level of form around here, whilst Style D'Emirs is overpriced on the bare form of his recent runs and can chase him home again. Theleme can show his class once more, but may find this too tough too soon on his return from injury.

1 LOSANGE BLEU. 2 STYLE D'EMIRS. 3 THELEME. 4 IT'S WIN O'CLOCK. 5 HOME BY THE LEE. 6 APPLE AWAY. 7 ILLUSION MACHINE. 8 JET BLUE. 9 HENRI THE SECOND. 10 GARDIEN DU MUSEE. 11 KIRIKOU DES MERS.