David Nicholson Mares Hurdle
The David Nicholson Mares’ Hurdle is a Grade 2 National Hunt race run on the opening day of the Cheltenham Festival. The race is open to fillies and mares of four-years in age or older.
The race is arguably the most fascinating on the opening day of the festival because the crowds are traditionally muted after the bigger races of the day. However, the races can be just as fierce and intense.
Race Details for the David Nicholson Mares Hurdle
The race details for the David Nicholson Mares’ Hurdle are similar to a lot of other National Hunt races on the calendar.
The race is run over a length of two miles and four furlongs and there are nine hurdles in total for the travelling field to negotiate on their way round the old course at Cheltenham. The David Nicholson Mares’ Hurdle has a prize purse of just under £100,000 available, which means a good incentive for all parties to take the race seriously.
There are various weight restrictions that are applied in this race for horses of specific ages. This is to ensure a fair and even race. Four-year-old horses are restricted to a weight of ten stones and six pounds while horses of five-years and older must all race with a minimum weight of 11 stones.
History of the David Nicholson Mares Hurdle
The history of the David Nicholson Maresí Hurdle dates back to 2008 when the race was first held. The race was introduced on the final day of the Cheltenham Festival as a tribute to David Nicholson (Born 1936, Passed 2006) who was a leading jockey and trainer in racing.
The race changed slightly in 2009 when it was switched to the opening day of the Cheltenham Festival. The move was made to ensure there was a high quality race that would stop punters leaving the festival after seeing the Champions Hurdle race.
The David Nicholson Mares’ Hurdle is seen as the perfect race for trainers to throw their young fillies and mares in at the deep end in order to see if they have what it takes for a long and successful career.
David Nicholson
David Nicholson was one of the most successful trainers in Horse racing history at Cheltenham. He trained a grand total of 17 winners who ran around the famous racecourse. He had five wins as a jockey at Cheltenham and always held the racecourse close to his heart.
David Nicholson Mares Hurdle Honours
The list of David Nicholson Mares’ Hurdle honours is not very long as the race has only existed since 2008 and has only been run three times.
Quevega is the most successful horse in the history of the David Nicholson Mares’ Hurdle with two wins; 2009 and 2010. These wins came in large fields of 21 and 17. On both of these occasions the jockey on board was Ruby Walsh and the trainer was Willie Mullins. Both of these men hold the records for the race in their respective areas of expertise.