Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase Attracts 43 – But Final Demand Dominates The Market
The Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase is the sort of race that jumps fans mark in their diaries long before Christmas, even if by the time the Festival arrives, they’re already juggling half a dozen other Grade 1s in their heads.
Run over 3m1f on the Old Course on Wednesday 11 March 2026, it’s a proper test of staying novice chasers: a stiff trip, 20 fences, and very few hiding places.
On the entries page it looks a monster of a race. A total of 43 horses have been put in for the 2026 renewal, all with a theoretical chance of lining up and claiming one of the more respected novice chasing prizes of the season.
In practice, we know that’s not how it works: the safety limit is 20, and only seven actually took their chance in last year’s renewal, turning it into more of a select shoot‑out than a cavalry charge.
With that in mind, only around one in six of the current entries are likely to make the final cut on the day.
Some will be diverted to other Festival races, others will be kept back for Punchestown or the Irish National, and a few will simply miss out through poor timing or bad luck.
It’s a reminder that early lists can look very generous, but long‑range backers have to be realistic about who will actually make the starting line.
One thing does already feel clear, though: there’s a standout name at the top of the betting.
Willie Mullins’ Final Demand has quickly become the horse everyone else is being measured against, and the layers have taken no chances in pricing him up for March.
Final Demand – Mullins’ New Staying Star
Final Demand is very much the profile horse in this division, and his résumé explains why his odds have shrunk so quickly.
A 7‑year‑old gelding in the care of Willie Mullins, he has emerged as one of the most exciting staying novices on either side of the Irish Sea.
He boasts four wins from five runs under rules, and three of his last four starts have come in Grade 1 company.
He climbed the ladder quickly, taking a top‑level hurdle at Leopardstown and then running a big race in third in the Turners at Cheltenham last March.
That Festival run suggested that a fence and a longer trip would bring about further improvement, and he backed that up by returning to Ireland and bagging another Grade 1 over 2m4f at Punchestown.
After a summer break, he made his chasing debut at Navan in November 2025, going off a very short price and doing exactly what was expected – jumping fluently, travelling on the bridle for most of the way and stretching clear late on over 2m4f on heavy ground.
He’s also got that invaluable bit of Festival experience from his hurdling days, having shown at Cheltenham that the track, the atmosphere, and the famous hill don’t faze him.
That combination of profile, trainer, and ratings has him as short as even money with some firms, and around 10/11 elsewhere – a chunky quote for a novice six weeks out.
From a purely betting perspective, there isn’t much margin built in, but the case for him on the track is very straightforward.
Brown Advisory Betting
The Brown Advisory is often a race where punters have to decide whether to side with a hotpot or fish around for each‑way value among the opposition, and 2026 looks no different.
Anyone happy to be in the Final Demand camp is effectively backing fitness, soundness, and straightforward planning as well as talent.
Many will prefer to wait for non‑runner‑no‑bet concessions and accept slightly shorter odds rather than take on all that risk in January.
If you’re more interested in something at a price, a few of the others on the entry sheet make some appeal.
Kitzbuhel, also from Willie Mullins, could give him a real run for his money. Given that this is the only Festival entry he has received, he is almost certain to line up.
The Big Westerner, representing Henry de Bromhead, is another who could have a say if he lines up.
Trading in the low double‑figure bracket, he comes into the season on good form, and shapes as though three miles on a stiff track will play to his strengths.
As always in this sort of race, keeping an eye on the late January and February trials will be important.
Shopping around for best odds, extra places and favourable antepost terms will also make a difference once you’ve decided who you want on your side.
Final Demand Sets The Bar
Looking ahead to March, the shape of the Brown Advisory feels fairly well established even at this early stage.
Final Demand is the clear benchmark – a progressive, high‑class novice from the dominant Festival yard, with the right form, the right age and the right profile for the job.
The question for punters is less “is he good enough?” and more “do you want to take that price in a race where things can go wrong?”
Behind him sits a supporting cast that offers a mix of proven performers and unexposed improvers, any one of whom could take a step forward in the next month or two.
If a couple of them arrive in red‑hot form, the final field could be smaller than the entry list suggests but deeper in quality than last year’s seven‑runner edition.
Either way, the 2026 Brown Advisory looks set to tell us plenty about the staying‑chase pecking order for the next few seasons.
Whether Final Demand stamps himself as the next big thing, or one of the others springs a surprise, this is the race where reputations in the division tend to crystallise.
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