Sublimity wins Champion Hurdle

Sublimity, a French-bred 7-year-old horse by Selkirk, won the $684,000 Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham on Tuesday, beating two former winners of the race.

Fourth in the Supreme Novices Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival last year, the 16-1 Sublimity came from last to first in the Grade 1 Champion to defeat last year's winner, Brave Inca, by three lengths. Afsoun was up for third by a neck from the pacesetting Hardy Eustace, who had won this race in both 2004 and 2005. Detroit City, the 3-2 favorite and unbeaten in his last seven starts over hurdles, struggled home sixth, 18 1/2 lengths behind the winner. The time for the 2 1/16 miles on soft ground was 3:55.70, just 3.70 seconds slower than the standard time.

Trained in Ireland by John Garr, Sublimity was ridden by Philip Carberry.

Sublimity had run only once previously this season, winning a modest two-mile hurdle at Navan on Jan. 27. His owner, Bill Hennessy, bought him from Saheed Suhail in 2004, a few months after he had won the listed Doncaster Mile. Sublimity won first time out in Hennessy's colors, taking the listed Alleged Stakes at the Curragh in April, 2005 and has since won 3 of 6 starts over hurdles.