How much money is up for grabs in the Queen Mother Champion Chase? We’ll take a look at the size of the purse throughout the years in this handy guide.
With more than 60 years of history, the Queen Mother Champion Chase is one of the most prestigious events at the Cheltenham Festival, and the size of its prize pot reflects its status. The purse has more than doubled in size over the last 25 years, but how much money does the Champion Chase winner earn?
We’ll review the earnings for each placing horse in the next edition of the Champion Chase, as well as looking back to see how much the competitors won in previous instalments of the competition. Read on to learn more about the earnings of Champion Chase winners:
What is the Champion Chase prize pot for Cheltenham 2026?
The winner of the 2026 Cheltenham Champion Chase stands to earn around £225,000 from their victory. This would be the fourth-largest winning prize pot in the history of the race. Overall, the purse is expected to stay at the £400,000 mark – the same as in 2025.
Here’s a breakdown of how much each horse in the top 8 is expected to earn in the next edition of the Queen Mother Champion Chase:
Place | Prize |
1st | £225,080 |
2nd | £84,800 |
3rd | £42,440 |
4th | £21,200 |
5th | £10,640 |
6th | £5,320 |
7th | £2,640 |
8th | £1,360 |
Incredibly, the Champion Chase prize pretty much doubles for each place you move up the leaderboard, with the champion walking away nearly a quarter of a million richer.
What was the prize money for the Champion Chase in 2025?
The overall purse in the 2025 edition of the Champion Chase was £400,000, but the first-place prize money was slightly higher than the current estimate for the 2026 winner, standing at £226,944. This was earned by trainer Barry Connell and jockey Sean Flanagan – who was riding Marine Nationale.
If you’re interested in learning more about previous winners of the race’s grandest prize, discover the complete history of Champion Chase winners.
How has the Cheltenham Champion Chase prize money changed over time?
Want to see how the prize pot has grown over the years? Here’s a look back at how much the Champion Chase winners have earned since 2000:
Year | Winning horse | First place prize money | Total prize pot |
2025 | Marine Nationale | £226,944 | £400,000 |
2024 | Captain Guinness | £237,466 | £400,000 |
2023 | Energumene | £226,672 | £400,000 |
2022 | Energumene | £226,672 | £400,000 |
2021 | Put The Kettle On | £168,810 | £295,110 |
2020 | Politologue | £225,080 | £400,000 |
2019 | Altior | £255,080 | £400,000 |
2018 | Altior | £228,872 | £400,000 |
2017 | Special Tiara | £208,300 | £365,760 |
2016 | Sprinter Sacre | £199,325 | £350,000 |
2015 | Dodging Bullets | £199,325 | £350,000 |
2014 | Sire De Grugy | £199,325 | £350,000 |
2013 | Sprinter Sacre | £208,300 | £350,000 |
2012 | Finian’s Rainbow | £182,240 | £320,000 |
2011 | Sizing Europe | £182,432 | £320,000 |
2010 | Big Zeb | £182,432 | £320,000 |
2009 | Master Minded | £182,432 | £320,000 |
2008 | Master Minded | £176,762 | £310,000 |
2007 | Voy Por Ustedes | £176,762 | £307,186 |
2006 | Newmill | £165,358 | £290,000 |
2005 | Moscow Flyer | £145,000 | £250,000 |
2004 | Azertyuiop | £145,000 | £250,000 |
2003 | Moscow Flyer | £145,000 | £239,010 |
2002 | Flagship Uberalles | £127,600 | £220,000 |
2001 | Cheltenham Festival was cancelled in 2001 | ||
2000 | Edredon Bleu | £107,300 | ~£180,000 |
Since the turn of the 21st Century, the overall prize money on offer at the Queen Mother Champion Chase has more than doubled. The current purse has remained relatively stable since 2018, when it first hit £400,000. The exception to this is 2021, when the impact of COVID-19 led to a reduced prize pot.
Over the last 25 years, the prize money in the Champion Chase has risen so sharply that many winners have earned more from their victories than the whole purse of earlier editions of the race. For example, in 2009, Master Minded took home £182,432 in his second consecutive victory. With the estimated prize pool in 2000 standing at around £180,000, he won more in one race than was on offer for the whole field of competitors just 9 years earlier!
If you’re interested in learning more about what the winners can earn over the course of the festival, check out our complete review of the Cheltenham prize money.
