A wise man once said “always keep your best horses in the worst possible company”, so that’s precisely what Nicky Henderson and Michael Buckley are doing with their king of the 2m hurdlers, Constitution Hill.
It’s been confirmed that he remains over the smaller obstacles for this coming season, but don’t expect strong challenges to dominance. Reports of the demise of the 2m hurdler in Great Britain haven’t been greatly exaggerated. In fact, the chronic lack of depth in the division hasn’t been talked about enough.
Visit any horse racing betting sites you bet with and, outside of the sponsors Unibet, it’s 50/1 for the next best British-trained Champion Hurdle contender. The Irish regularly come over and batter the home team at the Cheltenham Festival, so do we need to make it so easy for them?
Only the Emerald Isle’s best hurdlers had no answer to Constitution Hill when he landed the Champion Hurdle by some nine lengths in March. State Man will try again, according to trainer Willie Mullins, but why should the result be any different? With Vauban consigned to the Flat, the next great hope out of Closutton is Impaire Et Passe.
Most of his wins have been over further than the Champion Hurdle distance, but it doesn’t mean he lacks pace or class. According to the Anglo Irish Classifications published at the end of last season, Constitution Hill stands alone on a mark of 175. He’s 10lb clear of State Man and 15lb above Impaire Et Passe, who could improve but obviously must.
Constitution Hill a Class Apart from Other British 2m Hurdlers
Reviewing those end-of-season ratings lays the elephant in the room bare. This is not a golden era for 2m hurdlers by any means, no matter the exploits of recent superstars like Buveur D’Air and Honeysuckle. The very distant next best to Constitution Hill is I Like To Move It (154). He’s a stone-and-a-half behind the Champion Hurdle favourite on official figures.
Like Knappers Hill (153), we may never see I Like To Move It over the smaller obstacles again. Novice chasing is on the agenda for both later this autumn when the core National Hunt season gets underway. That leaves the veteran Sceau Royal, rising 11, as the nominal second best hurdler in the country.
If you think Alan King’s loyal servant is long in the tooth, then Not So Sleepy who turns 12 in 2024 is the only other British horse in the division with a rating above 150. The 2m hurdlers cupboard isn’t just bare, it’s in danger of falling off its hinges. Thar’s a real turnoff for punters looking on betting sites for a bit of value.
Throwing money at the problem isn’t keeping horses in training for this sphere either. Your guess is as good as ours over the runners for Grade 2 events like the Elite Hurdle, International Hurdle and Kingwell Hurdle while Constitution Hill mops up the Fighting Fifth and Christmas Hurdle in and around them.
Henderson Could Have Effective Monopoly in UK
There’s little solace in looking down the fields from the Cheltenham results of Grade 1 novice hurdles either. The first eight home in the Supreme were all trained across the Irish Sea. In the Ballymore, won by Impaire Et Passe, the Brits fared no better than fourth.
Aintree gives the home team some respite with many Emerald Isle raiders saved for Punchestown instead. The Top Novices’ Hurdle saw Olly Murphy’s Strong Leader and the mare Luccia, also trained by Henderson, hit the frame. The former may be another heading straight over fences.
Luccia has a bumper background, so stepping up in trip with a view to the Mares’ Hurdle could be her angle. Seven Barrows also boasts last season’s Gerry Feilden winner from Newbury races in First Street. JP McManus-owned filly Under Control remains a progressive youngster too, but this is clutching at straws in the search for 2m hurdlers.
Henderson may divide and conquer with these second strings who all have youth on their side, but none are anything like in the same league as Constitution Hill. To all intents and purposes, he’s a shark in a fish tank full of minnows and punters are poorer for this distinct lack of competition.
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