Eight runners, three returning rivals from one of the biggest races of the summer, and an Aidan O’Brien team strong enough to include a dual Derby winner as one of its outsiders.
Saturday’s Royal Bahrain Irish Champion Stakes 2026 has turned into a very interesting betting race.
The Group 1 takes place over 1m2f at Leopardstown at 5.00pm on Saturday, September 12th, with €1.25 million in total prize money.
Constitution River heads the odds market at around 5/4, but Andrew Balding’s Juddmonte International winner Item is not far away at approximately 5/2.
Almaqam, who split the pair at York, is next at around 4/1. After that there is a noticeable jump in the market, but this is not a race where the bigger-priced horses can all be written off without a second glance.
The eight runners bring together Group 1 winners, Classic form, proven Leopardstown performers and a couple of horses who could have a major effect on how the race develops.
Irish Champion Stakes 2026 Runners and Odds
| Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Constitution River | Aidan O’Brien | Ryan Moore | 5/4 |
| Item | Andrew Balding | Colin Keane | 5/2 |
| Almaqam | Ed Walker | Kieran Shoemark | 4/1 |
| A Boy Named Susie | Donnacha O’Brien | Oisin Murphy | 10/1 |
| Hawk Mountain | Aidan O’Brien | Pierre-Charles Boudot | 25/1 |
| Wimbledon Hawkeye | George Scott | Christophe Soumillon | 28/1 |
| Lambourn | Aidan O’Brien | Declan McDonogh | 33/1 |
| Hotazhell | Jessica Harrington | Shane Foley | 40/1 |
Constitution River
It says plenty about Constitution River’s standing that one defeat has not cost him favouritism.
Aidan O’Brien’s colt won five races in succession before finishing third in the Juddmonte International at York, a run which included the French Derby at Chantilly and the Coral-Eclipse at Sandown.
The York race went badly from a tactical point of view when Constitution River raced more freely than ideal, while the intended Ballydoyle pace plan did not work after Action failed to get into the race as expected.
That does not mean his defeat can simply be ignored, particularly as Item beat him by more than three lengths, but there is a strong reason for expecting a different type of race at Leopardstown.
Lambourn and Hawk Mountain give O’Brien two possible pace options, and a stronger gallop could allow Ryan Moore to settle Constitution River and save his effort for the straight.
Item
If Constitution River has to prove York was misleading, Item has to prove it was not.
Andrew Balding’s three-year-old comes to Ireland having won five of his six starts, with his Derby defeat on soft ground at Epsom the only time he has failed to win.
York has been particularly kind to him. He won the Dante there in May, returned to take the York Stakes in July and then claimed the Juddmonte International in August, catching Almaqam close to the line.
He did not get a perfect passage in the International either, which makes it difficult to argue that he was simply lucky.
Colin Keane keeps the ride, and Item receives the six-pound weight-for-age allowance from older horses such as Almaqam.
At around 5/2, he is very easy to understand as the main alternative to the favourite.
Almaqam
Anyone looking beyond the first two in the betting is likely to arrive at Almaqam fairly quickly.
Ed Walker’s five-year-old was beaten only a head by Item at York and appeared to have the race won when moving clear under Kieran Shoemark.
He may simply have been in front a fraction too soon, but that run followed an earlier Group 1 success in the Tattersalls Gold Cup at the Curragh, his previous visit to Ireland.
Ground conditions are worth watching because Walker has made it clear that Almaqam is happier when there is at least a little ease underfoot. Very quick ground is not ideal.
He provides an attractive third option in a market which could easily have been framed more tightly around the York first three.
A Boy Named Susie
Donnacha O’Brien’s A Boy Named Susie is another three-year-old who gets 6lb from the older horses.
He has spent much of the season running against Constitution River and has improved as the year has progressed.
He finished fourth in the French Derby before chasing Constitution River home in the Eclipse at Sandown, where he was beaten three lengths.
A confidence-building Curragh success followed. Oisin Murphy takes the ride at Leopardstown and odds of around 10/1 reflect both his ability and the fact that he still needs to improve again if he is going to beat the leading pair.
Wimbledon Hawkeye
Wimbledon Hawkeye is one of the more unusual runners in the field. Now trained by George Scott, the four-year-old was third behind Hotazhell in a German Group 1 before going to Deauville and winning at Group 3 level.
Connections then paid €75,000 to add him to the Irish Champion Stakes, which tells you they believe he deserves his place.
Christophe Soumillon is a major jockey booking and knows exactly what is required around Leopardstown, having won this race on Almanzor in 2016 and Delacroix last year.
At around 28/1, Wimbledon Hawkeye needs another step forward, but he comes into the contest in good form.
Hawk Mountain
Hawk Mountain is a much bigger price than he would have been earlier in the season. The Aidan O’Brien colt finished second behind Constitution River in the French Derby and third behind him in the Eclipse, form which would give him some sort of chance here.
York changed things when he was asked to take a leading role after Ballydoyle’s original pace plan fell apart, but raced too freely and eventually finished well beaten.
Pierre-Charles Boudot takes the ride this time, and at around 25/1, is difficult to recommend strongly after York, although his earlier form is better than his price might first suggest.
Hotazhell
Jessica Harrington’s Hotazhell already knows what it takes to run well in this race, having finished fourth in the 2025 Irish Champion Stakes.
He has since added another Group 1 success to his record, getting up in a close finish in Germany this summer.
At around 40/1, Hotazhell needs a career-best performance, but there are worse outsiders in major Group 1 races.
Lambourn
Seeing a Derby and Irish Derby winner available at around 33/1 looks strange on paper, but Lambourn’s price is based on what he has done this season rather than what he achieved in 2025.
He began the campaign by winning the Huxley Stakes at Chester but has struggled to reproduce his best Classic form since.
There were better signs when he finished fourth in the King George at Ascot, and dropping from 1m4f to 1m2f could allow him to use his stamina from the front.
Whether he is here mainly to help produce the right pace for Constitution River will be widely discussed before the race. Even if that is his main tactical role, ignoring a horse with his record entirely is never comfortable.
York Provides the Main Clue
The Juddmonte International is impossible to get away from when studying this race.
Item won it, Almaqam finished a head away in second, and Constitution River was more than three lengths behind them in third.
The betting says that result might be reversed, because Constitution River is favourite again, but punters have to decide how much weight to give O’Brien’s explanation that the York race simply went wrong.
Leopardstown is also a very different test. The turns, position going into the straight and shorter run home mean tactics matter enormously, and three Ballydoyle runners give O’Brien several ways of setting the race up.
The Betting Verdict
Constitution River deserves his place at the head of the market on the strength of his French Derby and Eclipse wins, but his odds leave very little room for mistakes.
Item makes plenty of sense. He has beaten the favourite already, arrives in winning form and is officially rated slightly higher.
Almaqam may be the most interesting price of the three, especially if conditions suit him, because there was virtually nothing between him and Item at York.
A Boy Named Susie is the most obvious runner outside the leading trio who could move forward again, but what makes this Irish Champion Stakes so good is that the betting does not quite agree with the most recent result.
At 5.00pm on Saturday, we get to see which piece of evidence matters most.
BETFRED
