Howden Long Walk Hurdle
Grade 1, Ascot 14:25
£125,000 guaranteed
4yo plus,
3m 102y, Class 1  
Saturday 20th December 2025

BetPlay

1 Impose Toi 3/1
2 Strong Leader 15/2
3 Honesty Policy 11/4F
11 ran Distances: 1¼l, nk, 7l
Time: 5m 58.59s (slow by 5.09s)

Impose Toi continued to move steadily through the ranks with a gritty and thoroughly professional success.

The seven-year-old, trained by Nicky Henderson, had begun his campaign in handicap company at Aintree and took another clear step forward here when pitched into the upper echelons of the staying hurdle division.

Tasked with taking on Strong Leader, widely regarded as the leading staying hurdler currently based in Britain, Impose Toi was conceding 6lb to Olly Murphy’s tough and dependable performer. When the race began to take shape, Strong Leader moved menacingly to the fore, underlining his effectiveness going right-handed, but the JP McManus-owned duo of Impose Toi and Honesty Policy were travelling with notably greater ease.

Strong Leader refused to lie down and ensured it became a proper test, prompting Nico de Boinville to get serious aboard Impose Toi at the business end. The response was decisive. As Honesty Policy, making his seasonal return, briefly cried enough, Impose Toi found more and edged clear, maintaining his effort all the way to the line to score by a length and a quarter, with Honesty Policy rallying late to finish a neck back in third.

Henderson said: “He (De Boinville) knew what he had to do and he’s given him the most perfect ride. We were quite a bit worse off with Strong Leader today so we had to improve 6lb.

“He’s had a dream run round, he jumped, he travelled and he was just always going best . From my point of view it was quite pleasurable to watch!

“When you see them going that well all you are thinking is they’ve got to finish it off. Nico did look like he had them covered.

“He was pretty flawless, I’ve got to say.

“If a horse finishes behind him at home you’ve got to start worrying because he does absolutely nothing! He’s extraordinary in that sense, but now we know, and that’s fine.

“Because of that I think we’d want one more run before March and give him January off. The Cleeve would be coming back to two and a half miles so I don’t know about that.”

De Boinville said: “He looked and felt great, you could only be delighted with that. It went very smoothly.

“We’re delighted with how he’s progressed this season, he’s coming into his own now.

“That was a true test of stamina today so it’s fantastic, we’re over the moon, you couldn’t not be.

“That was level weights so he’s entitled to be up there rated with the best three-mile hurdlers.”

BoyleSports

Long Walk Hurdle
£125,000 guaranteed, 4yo plus, 3m 102y, Class 1
11 ran
Going: Good to Soft, Soft in places

POS. DIST HORSE AGE WGT TRAINER JOCKEY SP
1    Impose Toi 7 11-7 Nicky Henderson Nico de Boinville 3/1
2 1¼ Strong Leader 8 11-7 Olly Murphy Sean Bowen 15/2
3 nk Honesty Policy 5 11-7 Gordon Elliott Mark Walsh 11/4F
4 7 Potters Charm 6 11-7 Nigel & Willy Twiston-Davies Sam Twiston-Davies 9/2
5 1¼ Doddiethegreat 9 11-7 Nicky Henderson James Bowen 22/1
6 14 Altobelli 7 11-7 Harry Fry Bryan Carver 22/1
7 25 Crambo 8 11-7 Fergal O'Brien Jonathan Burke 16/1
8 shd Colonel Mustard 10 11-7 Mrs Lorna Fowler John Shinnick 20/1
PU Beauport 9 11-7 2 Nigel & Willy Twiston-Davies Tom Bellamy 18/1
PU Jet Blue 6 11-7 D Cottin Harry Cobden 17/2
PU Gwennie May Boy 7 11-7 Olly Murphy Charlie Deutsch 40/1

LONG WALK HURDLE ROLL OF HONOUR (1965-2021)
Race run as a handicap prior to 1971
(run at Newbury in 2009, Chepstow in 2005 and Windsor in 2004)

Year Winner Age/Wt Owner Trainer Jockey SP

2024 CRAMBO
2023 CRAMBO
2022 PAISLEY PARK
2021 CHAMP
2020 PAISLEY PARK
2019 THE WORLDS END
2018 PAISLEY PARK
2017 SAM SPINNER
2016 UNOWHATIMEANHARRY
2015 THISTLECRACK
2014 REVE DE SIVOLA
2013 REVE DE SIVOLA
2012 REVE DE SIVOLA
2011 BIG BUCK’S 8-11-07 The Stewart Family Paul Nicholls AP McCoy 3/10F
2010 BIG BUCK’S 7-11-07 The Stewart Family Paul Nicholls AP McCoy 2/13F
2009 BIG BUCK’S 6-11-07 The Stewart Family Paul Nicholls Ruby Walsh 1/2F
2008 PUNCHESTOWNS 5-11-07 Judy Wilson Nicky Henderson Barry Geraghty 3/1F
2007 LOUGH DERG 7-11-07 W Frewen David Pipe Tom Scudamore 14/1
2006 MIGHTY MAN 6-11-07 Joss Hanbury Henry Daly Richard Johnson 11/8F
2005 MY WAY DE SOLZEN 5-11-07 B Windfield, A Longman, J Wright, C Fenton; Alan King Robert Thornton 12/1
2004 BARACOUDA 9-11-07 J P McManus Francois Doumen FR Tony McCoy 8/13F
2003 BARACOUDA 8-11-07 J P McManus Francois Doumen FR Thierry Doumen 2/7F
2002 DEANO’S BEENO 10-11-07 Axom Martin Pipe Tony McCoy 14/1
2001 BARACOUDA 6-11-07 J P McManus Francois Doumen FR Thierry Doumen 2/5F
2000 BARACOUDA 5-11-07 Roger Barby Francois Doumen FR Thierry Doumen 11/4
1999 ANZUM 8-11-07 Old Foresters P’ship Alan King Richard Johnson 4/1
1998 PRINCEFUL 7-11-07 Robert Hitchins Jenny Pitman Richard Dunwoody 11/4F
1997 PADDY’S RETURN 5-11-07 Paddy O’Donnell Ferdy Murphy Norman Williamson 8/1
1996 OCEAN HAWK 4-11-07 Matt Archer/Jean Broadhurst Nigel Twiston-Davies Carl Llewellyn 7/1
1995 SILVER WEDGE 4-11-07 Shirley & Bill Robins Oliver Sherwood Jamie Osborne 7/1
1994 HEBRIDEAN 7-11-07 Peter Deal David Nicholson Adrian Maguire 100/30
1993 SWEET DUKE 6-11-07 Andy Mavrou Nigel Twiston-Davies Carl Llewellyn 7/2
1992 VAGOG 7-11-07 M A Swift Martin Pipe Martin Foster 15/2
1991 Abandoned due to frost
1990 FLOYD 10-11-07 Mike Walsh David Elsworth Graham Bradley 10/1
1989 ROYAL ATHLETE 6-10-08 Gary Johnson Jenny Pitman Dean Gallagher 33/1
1988 FRENCH GOBLIN 5-11-01 Maurice Pinto Josh Gifford Peter Hobbs 3/1
1987 BLUFF COVE 5-10-08 Dickins Ltd Reg Hollinshead Richard Dunwoody 14/1
1986 OUT OF THE GLOOM 5-10-08 Paul Green Reg Hollinshead Peter Scudamore 4/1
1985 MISTY DALE 7-10-08 David Rose Jenny Pitman Phil Tuck 9/4F
1984 KRISTENSON 7-10-08 Ursula Fantasia Roger Fisher Michael Williams 7/2
1983 CRIMSON EMBERS 8-10-11 Pam Smart Fulke Walwyn Stuart Shilston 14/1
1982 MAYOTTE 7-10-11 B Davies Richard Holder Paul Richards 15/8F
1981 Abandoned due to snow
1980 DERRING ROSE 5-11-11 Peter Savill Fred Winter John Francome 7/1
1979 JOHN CHERRY 8-10-11 Milton Ritzenberg Tom Jones Steve Smith Eccles 6/1
1978 KELSO CHANT 6-11-07 Mrs M Richardson Jumbo Wilkinson Steve Charlton 10/1
1977 JOHN CHERRY 6-10-11 Milton Ritzenberg Tom Jones Steve Smith Eccles 11/8F
1976 Abandoned due to frost
1975 LANZAROTE 7-12-05 Lord Howard de Walden Fred Winter John Francome 4/9F
1974 GO BINGO 5-11-12 Guy Reed Sam Hall David Munro 9/4
1973 SOLONING 8-11-08 Mrs C Thornton Fred Winter Richard Pitman 9/2
1972 HIGHLAND ABBE 6-11-12 Mrs K Hankey Les Kennard Mr R Smith 11/1
1971 ST PATRICK’S BLUE 6-11-12 P Aunger David Tatlow Bill Smith 7/2F
1970 ROUGE AUTUMN 6-10-05 Bryan Jenks Fred Rimell Ken White 9/2F
1969 CANDID CAMERA 6-10-06 R F P Ross Ted Goddard Joe Guest 100/8
1968 Abandoned due to waterlogging
1967 Abandoned due to foot and mouth epidemic
1966 SIR EDWARD 6-10-09 R Heaton Ryan Price Josh Gifford 7/2F
1965 MINUTE GUN 8-10-04 Bill Shand Kydd Bill Shand Kydd Richard Pitman 100/8

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