Punchestown Festival 2026 – Runners, Entries & 5 Day Fixture List

The Punchestown Festival 2026 brings together 40 races, including 12 Grade 1 contests, and serves as the official finale to the Irish National Hunt season, with a record prize fund of 3.6 million euros.

It is where Ireland’s champion jockey, trainer, and owner titles are settled, and every Grade 1 carries at least 300,000 euros, making this meeting second only to Cheltenham in depth and quality of jump racing.

Widely viewed as the biggest jumps fixture in Ireland, the 2026 edition runs from Tuesday 28 April to Saturday 2 May and brings many Cheltenham and Aintree winners back for one final week of championship-level competition.

There are 12 Grade 1 races across the five days, headed by the William Hill Champion Chase, Ladbrokes Punchestown Gold Cup, Ladbrokes Champion Stayers Hurdle, and Boodles Champion Hurdle.

The festival also crowns the season’s champions, with the Irish jump jockeys’ title among the honours confirmed on the final day at Punchestown.

That mixture of high-class racing, large fields, and end-of-season storylines is what makes this week a key target for the top yards in Ireland and Britain.

Tuesday 28 April – Champion Chase Day

The feature on day one is the William Hill Champion Chase over two miles.

Il Etait Temps and Majborough head a deep field for Willie Mullins (he has four of the five runners), with Energumene and Marine Nationale adding further quality.

Il Etait Temps comes here after an excellent season at two miles, having already won the Queen Mother Champion Chase at Cheltenham in March, which underlines his status as one of the leading two-mile chasers in training.

Majborough shares that top-level rating bracket and is already a Grade 1 winner over fences at two miles, but he needs to bounce back from a below-par effort earlier in the spring.

Energumene, a dual Champion Chase winner in his pomp, showed he still retains plenty of ability when scoring earlier this year, although age and the emergence of younger rivals make repeat success more demanding.

Marine Nationale, last year’s winner of this race, has shaped well in his second season over fences, and his prior course-and-distance form at Punchestown is a clear positive, but his chase profile is not quite as established as Il Etait Temps at this level.

On balance, Il Etait Temps has the most complete recent Grade 1 chasing credentials at two miles and sets the standard if he reproduces his best.

Wednesday 29 April – Gold Cup Day

The Ladbrokes Punchestown Gold Cup is the centrepiece of the entire week and brings together Fact To File, Gaelic Warrior, and several other top-class staying chasers.

Gaelic Warrior arrives as a dual Grade 1 winner over fences this season, including the Gold Cup at Cheltenham, and already has course form at Punchestown, which makes him a pivotal figure in the market.

Fact To File, another high-class Mullins chaser, has a Punchestown Grade 1 on his record and may have marginally stronger recent form in open company.

Inothewayurthinkin, the 2025 Gold Cup winner for Gavin Cromwell, is coming here off a solid placed effort against elite opposition, but he still needs to prove he can dominate a field of this depth.

Impaire Et Passe and Grangeclare West bring classy but slightly patchy chase records to the race and might be better treated as each-way contenders.

On current evidence, Fact To File and Gaelic Warrior set a clear standard, with Fact To File’s most recent winning performance suggesting he could start favourite and holds major claims if backing that up.

Thursday 30 April – Stayers’ Hurdle Day

The Ladbrokes Champion Stayers Hurdle over almost three miles is the stamina test of the week.

Teahupoo, already a dual winner of the race and rated in the 160s over hurdles, returns in search of a third Punchestown Stayers crown and remains the most accomplished staying hurdler in the line-up.

Bob Olinger adds a fascinating dimension after a season that has seen him campaigned over intermediate and staying trips, with his Punchestown record and high-level Grade 1 form making him a serious threat if he sees out the full test.

Jade De Grugy, a top-class mare for Willie Mullins, gets the 7lb allowance, which brings her into the argument on ratings as a progressive alternative to the more exposed geldings.

Honesty Policy and Kawaboomga arrive on the back of solid graded runs, but still have something to find with Teahupoo at this level.

Given his previous Festival wins and proven stamina at Punchestown, Teahupoo justifiably holds favouritism and sets a clear benchmark in this division.

Friday 1 May – Champion Hurdle Day

The Boodles Champion Hurdle over two miles is the headline race and looks set to revolve around Lossiemouth, Brighterdaysahead and El Fabiolo.

Lossiemouth, last season’s dominant mare, has continued her progression and arrives and arrives here as the current Champion Hurdle winner after an incredible run at Cheltenham.

Brighterdaysahead, a rapidly improving mare from Gordon Elliott’s yard, has put together a sequence of high-class efforts and comes here after winning at the top level earlier in the campaign, with her current rating only marginally behind Lossiemouth.

El Fabiolo, better known as a champion two-mile chaser, has been running over hurdles all season but at a much lower level that some of his rivals, adding depth rather than setting the standard.

Others, such as Absurde and Poniros, are solid graded performers but do not yet match Lossiemouth’s established championship form.

On the available evidence, Lossiemouth has the most compelling profile for Punchestown and is a rightful favourite, with Brighterdaysahead the main rival if she continues her upward curve.

Saturday 2 May – Festival Saturday

Festival Saturday is marketed as the wrap party for the Irish jumps season and combines competitive handicaps with two Grade 1 contests on hurdles.

The SBK Irish EBF Mares Champion Hurdle at 15:40 is the feature for older mares, complementing the Ballymore Champion Four Year Old Hurdle later on the card.

Final declarations for these races are closer to the day, but the mares’ Champion Hurdle typically draws the leading Irish and British mares from two-mile and intermediate trips.

Given her presence in the Champion Stayers field earlier in the week, Jade De Grugy is an obvious candidate to drop back in trip if connections decide to exploit her versatility, and Jetara is another mare with Punchestown form who is likely to be aimed at one of the mares’ Grade 1s.

In the four-year-old hurdle, the best juveniles from Cheltenham and Aintree are expected to reoppose, and the race often confirms the pecking order of the juvenile crop at the end of the Irish season.

Market leadership on the day will hinge on how those youngsters have emerged from their earlier spring targets, but the race is almost always shaped by a strong Mullins and Elliott presence.

Five Incredible Days Of Racing

Across five days, Punchestown brings together 12 Grade 1 races, a record 3.6 million euros in prize money, and the season’s key stars from Ireland and Britain.

With championship races at two miles, staying hurdles and top-level novice events, the 2026 Festival provides a final, decisive test of form after Cheltenham and Aintree and often reshapes end-of-season ratings.

For punters and fans, the structure of the meeting – from Tuesday’s William Hill Champion Chase through to Saturday’s juvenile and mares’ Grade 1s – offers a clear storyline and several chances to see the leading horses in each division.

It is that combination of depth, prize money, and championship significance that ensures Punchestown remains a cornerstone of the jump racing calendar in Ireland.

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