Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Chase

The Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Chase is the penultimate race on the second day of action at the Cheltenham Festival. The race was first run in 1834 at Andersford near Cheltenham and is believed to be the oldest race on the festival schedule. It was briefly halted during the 1860s but was re-established at the turn of the 20th century. The race is named after former trainer, and father of legendary trainer Nicky Henderson, Johnny Henderson.

Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Chase Overview

The Grand Annual Chase is a Premier handicap run over 1 mile, 7 furlongs, and 199 yards on the old course with fourteen fences to be jumped. It is run on the second day of the Cheltenham Festival, usually as the sixth race on the card. The race is open to horses aged five years and older with the likely first place prize money likely to be around £70,000.

Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Chase Betting Trends and Statistics

• Novice or second-season chasers have won 12 of the last 16 renewals including last year’s winner Unexpected Party.
• Owner J P McManus has a fine record in the race which includes four winners in the past 19 renewals and 9 seconds so anything he runs has to be taken seriously.
• Paul Nicholls has the best recent trainer record in the race having won it four times since 2004.
• Since being named in honour of his father Johnny Henderson, son Nicky has run 39 horses of which only two have won.
• Willie Mullins has only had 9 runners this century and has yet to visit the winners’ enclosure.
• Over the last 20 years, only two favourites have obliged and there have been numerous big-priced winners at 22/1, 28/1 (twice) and even 66/1(Croco Bay in 2019).
• Previous runners in the race have done well with 8 of the last 18 winners having run in the race before.

Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Chase History

The Grand Annual is the oldest race at the Festival. Also, the oldest in the current National Hunt calendar having been first run in 1834 at Andoversford, near Cheltenham over three miles of open countryside.

The name of Johnny Henderson, father of trainer Nicky Henderson and a prominent racehorse owner, was added to the race title in 2005 in recognition of his work to ward off the interest of property developers in forming the Racecourse Holdings Trust, raising £240,000 to purchase and secure the venue.

Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Chase Winners