The Dooley Insurance Group Champion Novice Chase is a Grade 1 National Huntsteeplechase in Ireland which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run at Punchestown over a distance of about 3 miles and ½ furlong (3 miles and 120 yards, or 4,938 metres), and during its running there are seventeen fences to be jumped. The race is for novice chasers, and it is scheduled to take place each year during the Punchestown Festival in late April or early May.
The present version of the race was introduced in 2007, when it was sponsored by Ellier Developments. There had been two similar events in the preceding years – a Grade 2 race over a shorter distance (also sponsored by Ellier),[1] and a handicap race over the same length.[2] The new version was backed by Boylesports in 2009, and by Growise from 2010 to 2018.[citation needed]
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