Nicky Henderson has categorically dismissed the prospect of retirement for Constitution Hill, but the master of Seven Barrows has not ruled out stablemate Sir Gino stepping in for the fallen star in the Ladbrokes Christmas Hurdle at Kempton on Boxing Day.
Constitution Hill suffered the third fall in his last four starts when coming down at the second hurdle in Saturday’s Fighting Fifth Hurdle at Newcastle, with Henderson on Sunday stating his intention to momentarily press pause on his season while connections think about what might come next.
Discussing possibilities on Monday, Henderson again said a run on the Flat could beckon for Constitution Hill and, while no decision has been taken on his future over jumps, his trainer was unequivocal that retirement was out of the question.
“He was stiff yesterday but I don’t think it was anything more significant than that,” said Henderson. “I’ve talked to [owner] Michael Buckley and we’ve all had a chat but we haven’t come to any firm conclusions yet. We need to see how he is over the next ten days and take it one step at a time.
“I suppose one’s first reaction was, ‘Can I go on asking him to do this and asking Nico [de Boinville] and he to go and do something where you have to accept that at some stage somebody might get hurt doing it? He’s been lucky that he’s had three falls and come home unscathed. It’s pretty gruelling and we’re not going to ask him to do something if we don’t think it’s right to do so.
“The one thing I wouldn’t rule out is giving him a run on the Flat. He’s such a high-class horse that you might find there are crazy things he could do under the other code. It’s a possibility and among the many different options.”
Nicky Henderson “We’re not giving up, that’s for sure, and retirement is out of the question as far as I’m concerned”Credit: Edward Whitaker
Fences are not among those options, according to Henderson, but neither is cutting his career short a few weeks before he turns nine.
“He won’t run over fences, that I can tell you,” said the trainer, who was speaking to Nick Luck’s Daily Podcast. “He has not had a fall [at home] over a fence, a hurdle or anything else. But we have tried him over little fences. That is not the right route, I can assure everybody. That will not solve the problem.
“We’ve got to be very careful what we’re doing . . . but we’re not giving up, that’s for sure, and retirement is out of the question as far as I’m concerned, and I think Michael would agree.
“There’s no point giving up. You’ve got an eight-year-old who is in his prime and there are other things we can do. I’m certainly not going to promise you he’ll never jump a hurdle again because that’s not the case, he will. And we’ll be working on it, as we have been for the last six months.”
Sir Gino has not run since winning over fences at Kempton last ChristmasCredit: Edward Whitaker
Stablemate Sir Gino had been expected to start back from injury over fences this season, but those plans could change in the wake of what happened at Newcastle on Saturday.
“It has crossed our mind over the weekend,” said Henderson of a potential switch to hurdles. “I need a race for him around about Christmas. I was thinking about the Desert Orchid on December 27. I’ve always had that race in mind, but we’re not making any targets with Sir Gino. We’re going to let him take us to when he’s ready, rather than us force him to be ready for a day.
“I’m not going to deny that it has crossed my mind over the weekend that the obvious race to start him in, if you’re going to start him over Christmas, would be the Christmas Hurdle. It’s a possibility but no more.”
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