Following the star turns from Lossiemouth in the Champion Hurdle on Day 1 and Il Etait Temps in the Champion Chase on Day 2, the stamina-laden hurdlers grabbed the spotlight on Day 3 at the Cheltenham Festival. In common with the championship events earlier at the meeting, the Stayers’ Hurdle was claimed by an Irish raider, but not the horse most expected.
The Gordon Elliott-trained favourite, and 2024 winner, Teahupoo, seemed unsuited by the ground and laboured to a sixth-place finish. Henry De Bromhead’s defending champ Bob Olinger fared better but got going too late and finished only third. The 2023 King George winner Hewick gave it a good go from the front, only to fade close home, while Willie Mullins’ Ballyburn posted his best performance in some time, but still found one too good. That horse hails from the yard of Joseph O’Brien and goes by the name of Home By The Lee.
If at First You Don’t Succeed…
Making his debut in a Killarney bumper back in 2019, Home By The Lee has represented his trainer and owner Sean O’Driscoll with distinction over the years. Arriving at Cheltenham with 11 wins to his name – all of which came in his homeland – he had struck twice in Grade 1 company, when winning the 2022 Christmas Hurdle at Leopardstown and the 2024 Savills Hurdle at the same track.
As a proven Grade 1 staying star, Home By The Lee is a natural fit for the Stayers’ Hurdle and had been aimed at the race every year since 2022. However, while able to master the best of his Irish contemporaries on home soil, he was unable to repeat the feat at the biggest meeting of the year. Regularly performing with credit, his four previous Stayers’ Hurdle outings had yielded only one podium finish:
- 2022 – Sixth – Having struck at no higher than Grade 3 level at the time, a seven-year-old Home By The Lee started as a 33/1 chance in a field including three former winners of the race. Keeping tabs with the defending champ Flooring Porter early on, his winning chance ended with an error at the second last. Recovering his momentum, he stayed on well for sixth as Flooring Porter successfully defended his crown
- 2023 – Fifth – One year on, Home By The Lee had enhanced his CV with a verdict over Bob Olinger in the Grade 2 Lismullen Hurdle and a breakthrough Grade 1 triumph in the Leopardstown Christmas Hurdle. Sent off at 9/1, he produced a very similar performance to his 2022 display. Racing prominently, he made a juddering error at the sixth only to stick on well against the rail for fifth place, with the finish fought out by 33/1 winner Sire Du Berlais and 40/1 runner-up Dashel Drasher
- 2024 – Third – Below par efforts in the early stages of the season saw Home By The Lee start at 16/1 in 2024. A switch to more patient tactics did nothing to iron out his jumping errors, but Home By The Lee appeared in his customary position against the near rail in the straight. Once again sticking to his task, he finished a fine third but had no answer to the impressive winner Teahupoo
- 2025 Unseated Rider – Despite numerous errors, Home By The Lee had always completed the Stayers’ Hurdle course. That wasn’t the case in 2025, although he wasn’t to blame for his departure after the sixth hurdle. Finding himself with nowhere to go when Crambo fell directly in front of him, the 13/2 chance remained upright but sent J. J. Slevin on a journey to the Cheltenham turf
Perseverance Rewarded at 33/1
If there was a theme to Home By The Lee’s previous Stayers’ Hurdle efforts, it was that he had never really had the chance to show what he could do with an error-free round. That chance belatedly arrived as the 11-year-old tackled the race for a fifth time in 2026.
Despite arriving on the back of a solid Grade 2 win at Gowran Park, Home By The Lee started at the same price as he did in his 2022 Stayers’ Hurdle debut. Having rewarded each-way support only once in four previous efforts, it took a leap of faith to see him coming home in front at the fifth attempt.
Those who took the leap were rewarded with a 33/1 payout. Pushing the pace from as early as the second, he hit the front over the third last only to be overhauled by Kabral Du Mathan, who appeared to be travelling well. However, Kabral Du Mathan cracked on the Cheltenham Hill, allowing the dogged veteran to get back up and score by 1¼l from a revitalised Ballyburn, with defending champ Bob Olinger back in third.
| Positon | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | SP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Home By The Lee | Joseph Patrick O’Brien | J J Slevin | 33/1 |
| 2nd | Ballyburn | Willie Mullins | Paul Townend | 11/2 |
| 3rd | Bob Olinger | Henry De Bromhead | Darragh O’Keeffe | 13/2 |
Magical Moment for Owner
A tough result for most punters, but not owner Sean O’Driscoll who backed his star to prevail at 66/1. Summing up the unforgettable victory, O’Driscoll suggested the result meant much more to him than a winning betting slip.
“We bred him ourselves and he’s a horse of a lifetime. I’d have a great affinity with horses, like my uncle and grandfather had before me, but when you breed one yourself, it’s actually deeper than affinity. It’s just an incredible feeling – just magical.”