English/Ire
Constitution Hill thrills in Southwell success
Constitution Hill thrilled and delighted bumper crowds at Southwell on Friday night with an easy win on his Flat debut in the SBK Road To Cheltenham Novice Stakes.
Nicky Henderson's charge had fallen three times in his previous four runs over hurdles, unable to recapture the glittering form of his 2023 Champion Hurdle success. With confidence dented, connections decided that it would be beneficial for the nine-year-old to have an outing on the Flat.
An ongoing racing soap opera ensued, with ARC Racing deciding to host a 1m4f novice stakes during their 'Friday Night Live' fixture, boosting the prize money to a valuable pot of £40,000. With an attractive fund, the race caught the attention of flat and jumps trainers alike, leading to a situation where Constitution Hill could have been balloted out of the race formatted for his use.
With a full field of fourteen runners, barring a late withdrawal, the SBK Road To Cheltenham Novice Stakes turned into a competitive affair, with Constitution Hill set to face Amo Racing's improving Square Necker and the Willie Mullins-trained dual-purpose gelding Daddy Long Legs.
Constitution Hill, ridden by Champion Flat Jockey Oisin Murphy, always travelled strongly throughout the race, sitting four back on the outside as the field passed the stands for the first time. He moved ominously easily at the two furlong marker, passing the leader with a furlong to run before drawing clear for an impressive nine-and-a-half success.
The bumper crowd of 3250 people flocked to the winner's enclosure to see their hero, bringing tears to both owner Michael Buckley and trainer Nicky Henderson's eyes.
Nicky Henderson said: "I think he's enjoyed himself. Racing to go and do that for him is lovely because it probably hasn't been as much fun as it should have been.
"He has enjoyed it, Oisin did and we did in the end. Oisin said that he has a career here. We should probably have thought of this four years ago and we'd have been going around the world.
"It's tears tonight but we've been through a few tears over the last year or so and it's nice to be back with positive vibes. We've lots to look forward to and lots of decisions to make.
"We thought this would tell us what we ought to do and it does open up a lot of doors. We can do a lot of things and we have to think quite long and hard. It would be lovely to say we will do this but I don't think we can at this moment.
"There are all sorts of options and of course it includes the Champion Hurdle. The only thing is he's probably not a summer Flat horse but that (Southwell) rides quite quick. He stretched out really well."
Murphy added: "He felt like a machine at home and there wasn't a lot of strength in depth to that race. If he was to continue on the Flat, he's going to face tougher assignments but the feel was exactly the same today.
"For a big horse that has been jumping he has a lot of speed and is a joy to ride. It would have been very easy for me to blast off in front but I wanted to get in among them and give him an idea of what a Flat race is like because his next assignment, if he runs again on the Flat, will probably be in a Black Type race."
Paddy Power reacted to the win by shortening Constitution Hill to 2/1 favourite for the Champion Hurdle.
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