The Champion Bumper is a Grade 1 National Hunt flat race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four to six years. It is run on the Old Course at Cheltenham over a distance of about 2 miles and 110 yards (3,319 metres), and it is scheduled to take place each year during the Cheltenham Festival in March.
The event was established in 1992, and it was initially called the Festival Bumper. In its early years it had various sponsors, including the Tote and Guinness. A more sustained period of sponsorship began when Weatherbys began supporting the race in 1997, and since then it has been known by its present title.
The Champion Bumper is the most prestigious flat race, or "bumper", in the National Hunt calendar. It often features horses which go on to become leading performers over obstacles, such as Florida Pearl and Dunguib. Occasionally leading jockeys from Flat racing ride in the race and the 2002 winner, Pizarro, was ridden by Jamie Spencer, a Flat racing jockey.
Famous quotes containing the words champion and/or bumper:
“Let’s not quibble! I’m the foe of moderation, the champion of excess. If I may lift a line from a die-hard whose identity is lost in the shuffle, “I’d rather be strongly wrong than weakly right.””
—Tallulah Bankhead (1903–1968)
“Good places for aphorisms: in fortune cookies, on bumper stickers, and on banners flying over the Palace of Free Advice.”
—Mason Cooley (b. 1927)