The 2026 Stayers’ Hurdle is shaping up as a rare kind of showdown: two past winners, Teahupoo and Bob Olinger, carrying the same Robcour silks but representing rival trainers Gordon Elliott and Henry de Bromhead, heading back to Cheltenham to decide superiority over three miles.
With Teahupoo installed as a clear favourite yet Bob Olinger only a notch behind in the market, this year’s renewal looks less like a traditional championship race and more like an in‑house title fight between two stars who already know exactly what it takes to win it.
A Robcour Duel
Run over 3m (2m7f213y) on the New Course, the 2026 Stayers’ Hurdle is the feature on Thursday 12 March and the defining test for staying hurdlers at the Cheltenham Festival.
Teahupoo and Bob Olinger have dominated the division for the past two seasons, and both return as course‑and‑distance winners carrying the distinctive Robcour colours, yet they arrive from different powerhouses in the Irish training ranks.
Elliott and de Bromhead have each built formidable Festival records and now find themselves trying to beat a horse owned by the same man, an angle that adds an extra narrative twist to an already fascinating contest.
Teahupoo, winner in 2024 and again successful in the Champion Stayers Hurdle at Punchestown that spring, has been widely described as the current “standard bearer” of the staying hurdle division.
Punters have responded by sending him to the top of the 2026 market. Yet last year Bob Olinger, supposedly the Robcour second string, lowered his colours up the hill to extend an unbeaten Festival record and ensure that both rivals now turn up this time with a Stayers’ crown already on their CV.
Teahupoo – The Established King of the Stayers
Teahupoo’s 2024 Stayers’ Hurdle win was the performance that confirmed his class and stamina at this trip, as he travelled strongly and powered clear of Flooring Porter and Home By The Lee to score by three and three‑quarter lengths as a well‑backed favourite.
He then followed up at Punchestown, becoming the first horse this century to complete the Cheltenham–Punchestown staying hurdle double.
Elliott has managed him with a deliberately patient approach, often arriving at the Festival off a light preparation to keep him fresh, a tactic that has repeatedly paid off.
On ratings and recent body of work, Teahupoo still sets the standard in this division, boasting seven Grade 1 wins and a consistent profile that explains why he again heads the betting for 2026.
The question this time is whether, now a year older and having suffered defeat to his stablemate in 2025, he can reassert his authority against a horse who seems to come alive at Cheltenham.
Than again, winning both the Hatton’s Grace Hurdle and Christmas Hurdle this season more than boosted his chances for Cheltenham.
Bob Olinger – Cheltenham Specialist and People’s Horse
If Teahupoo is the division’s reigning monarch, Bob Olinger is its show‑stealer.
Already a dual Festival winner over shorter trips – in the Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle and the Turners Novices’ Chase – he returned to hurdles and stepped up to three miles to land the 2025 Stayers’ Hurdle, preserving a flawless Cheltenham record.
In that race he sat behind Teahupoo, the 7/4 favourite, before the pair jumped the last together and Bob Olinger surged clear to win by a length and three‑quarters in a finish that thrilled the stands.
De Bromhead has revived and reinvented him more than once, firstly switching him to fences and then back to hurdles when things did not go to plan, and the horse’s versatility and battling attitude have made him a firm favourite with racegoers.
Now rising eleven, he is older than many of his rivals but arrives with fewer miles on the clock over three miles and with that crucial knowledge that he can outstay Teahupoo on the hill when things fall right.
With the Robcour colours carried by both, the crowd may find their loyalties split between the established staying star and the Festival specialist who refuses to lose at Prestbury Park.
Dangers from a Deeper Field
The 2026 Stayers’ doesn’t end with the Robcour pair, and the strength in depth is largely provided by two progressive types: Honesty Policy and Kabral Du Mathan.
Honesty Policy, also trained by Elliott but owned by JP McManus, has won three of his six starts and placed in the others, marking himself out as one of the most upwardly mobile stayers around despite a defeat at Ascot in December.
Analysts note that his strong cruising speed and ability to quicken off a solid gallop make him a serious threat if he continues on his current trajectory into the spring.
Kabral Du Mathan, representing Dan Skelton (he moved from Paul Nicholls in September 2025), has also excelled this season, racking up back‑to‑back wins and posting improving figures that suggest he is still some way from his ceiling.
At six, he is far younger than the headline pair, the sort of profile that often makes a big leap forward when stepped into Grade 1 company at the Festival.
Both horses have the tactical speed and staying power to capitalise if the two Robcour stars get locked into an early duel or if either runs below peak level on the day.
What Kind Of Race Can We Expect?
Trends for the Stayers’ Hurdle point towards horses with prior Cheltenham form, proven stamina at three miles and, increasingly, those who have already shown themselves capable at Grade 1 level.
In that sense, Teahupoo and Bob Olinger fit the template perfectly, while Honesty Policy and Kabral Du Mathan arrive with the right sort of upward curve to threaten an established order that has been Robcour‑dominated for the past two seasons.
Much will depend on tactics: Teahupoo is often ridden to pounce late after travelling smoothly, whereas Bob Olinger tends to creep into contention before unleashing a strong finishing run up the hill.
If the ground turns soft, Teahupoo’s proven ability in testing conditions might tilt the balance, while a sounder surface could help Bob Olinger’s turn of foot and bring the younger improvers more fully into play.
Whatever the undercard throws up, the sight of two past champions in the same famous colours, yet coming from opposing camps, ensures that the 2026 Stayers’ Hurdle will be one of the week’s most compelling head‑to‑head battles.
BETFRED
