The Henry VIII Novices' Chase is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Sandown Park over a distance of about 1 mile 7½ furlongs (1 mile 7 furlongs and 99 yards, or 3,108 metres), and during its running there are thirteen fences to be jumped. The race is for novice chasers, and it is scheduled to take place each year in early December.
The event is named after Henry VIII, who commandeered Esher (the location of Sandown Park) as a royal hunting ground in the sixteenth century. In its analysis of the 2007 running, the Racing Post described the Henry VIII Novices' Chase as: "A race that has a very high standing in the calendar thanks to the exploits of past winners and subsequent Grade 1 stars like Direct Route, Decoupage, Fondmort, Impek, Thisthatandtother, Contraband and Racing Demon." It was raised to Grade 1 status in 2011 having previously been contested at Grade 2 level.
Records Leading jockey since 1980 (3 wins): Richard Rowe – Our Fun (1984), Midnight Count (1986), Ballyhane (1987) Richard Dunwoody – Acre Hill (1990), Wonder Man (1992), Certainly Strong (1995)
Leading trainer since 1980 (7 wins): Paul Nicholls – Dines (1998), Thisthatandtother (2003), Marodima (2007), Al Ferof (2011), Hinterland (2013), Vibrato Valtat (2014), Dynamite Dollars (2018)
Winners Year Winner Age Jockey Trainer1976Abandoned due to frost 1977 Prebihas 5 Roy Mangan David Nicholson1978Abandoned due to frost 1979 Master Davenport 7 Mr Paul Webber John Webber 1980 Easter Eel 9 John Francome Fred Winter 1981 Fifty Dollars More 6 John Francome Fred Winter 1982 Kilbrittain Castle 6 Bill Smith Fulke Walwyn1983Abandoned due to frost 1984 Our Fun 7 Richard Rowe Josh Gifford 1985 Desert Orchid 6 Colin Brown David Elsworth 1986 Midnight Count 6 Richard Rowe Josh Gifford 1987 Ballyhane 6 Richard Rowe Josh Gifford 1988 The Dragon Master 6 George Mernagh Robert Waley-Cohen 1989 Deep Flash 6 Tom Morgan John Edwards 1990 Acre Hill 6 Richard Dunwoody Nicky Henderson 1991 Peanuts Pet 6 Trevor Wall Bryan McMahon 1992 Wonder Man 7 Richard Dunwoody David Nicholson 1993 Baydon Star 6 Adrian Maguire David Nicholson 1994 Sound Reveille 6 Graham Bradley Charlie Brooks 1995 Certainly Strong 5 Richard Dunwoody David Nicholson 1996 Mulligan 6 Adrian Maguire David Nicholson 1997 Direct Route 6 Tony McCoy Howard Johnson 1998 Dines 6 Tony McCoy Paul Nicholls 1999 Decoupage 7 Norman Williamson Charles Egerton 2000 Crocadee 7 Paul Flynn Venetia Williams 2001 Fondmort 5 Mick Fitzgerald Nicky Henderson 2002 Impek 6 Jim Culloty Henrietta Knight 2003 Thisthatandtother 7 Ruby Walsh Paul Nicholls 2004 Contraband 6 Timmy Murphy Martin Pipe 2005 Racing Demon 5 Timmy Murphy Henrietta Knight 2006 Fair Along 4 Richard Johnson Philip Hobbs 2007 Marodima 4 Sam Thomas Paul Nicholls 2008 Araldur 4 Robert Thornton Alan King 2009 Somersby 5 Tony McCoy Henrietta Knight 2010 no race 2010 2011 Al Ferof 6 Ruby Walsh Paul Nicholls 2012 Captain Conan 5 Barry Geraghty Nicky Henderson 2013 Hinterland 5 Daryl Jacob Paul Nicholls 2014 Vibrato Valtat 5 Noel Fehily Paul Nicholls 2015 Ar Mad 5 Joshua Moore Gary Moore 2016 Altior 6 Noel Fehily Nicky Henderson 2017 Sceau Royal 5 Daryl Jacob Alan King 2018 Dynamite Dollars 5 Harry Cobden Paul Nicholls 2019 Esprit Du Large 5 Adam Wedge Evan Williams 2020 Allmankind 4 Harry Skelton Dan Skelton 2021 Edwardstone 7 Tom Cannon Alan King 2022 Jonbon 6 Aidan Coleman Nicky Henderson 2023 La Patron 5 David Noonan Gary Moore 2024 L'Eau Du Sud 6 Harry Skelton Dan Skelton 2025 Lulamba 4 Nico de Boinville Nicky Henderson
See also Horse racing in Great Britain List of British National Hunt races
References Racing Post: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
pedigreequery.com – Henry VIII Novices' Chase – Sandown.
External links Race Recordings (1986-2013) youtube.com