A pair of titanic Nicky Henderson vs William Mullins tussles lit up the 2024 edition of the Kempton Christmas Festival. The Christmas Hurdle on Boxing Day witnessed the return of the most talented hurdler of the past decade, as Constitution Hill tackled one of the main pretenders to his two-mile crown. One day later, a pair of the most promising novice chasers butted heads the Wayward Lad Novices’ Chase.
Despite the Irish dominance of British racing in recent years – highlighted once again by the success of Banbridge in the King George VI Chase – Nicky Henderson showed that he is a tough man to beat in Graded two-mile events.
Hill Back on Top
Rated 15 pounds clear of his rivals, the Christmas Hurdle was close to a penalty kick for Constitution Hill on ratings. Successful in the past two editions, the seven-year-old would likely have started as a heavily odds-on favourite granted an uninterrupted preparation.
However, 2024 was anything but plain sailing for the son of Blue Bresil. Along with many others in the Henderson yard, the superstar was under the weather in the spring and missed the Cheltenham Festival. For Constitution Hill, that was only the beginning of his troubles. A bout of potentially life-threatening colic preceded a pair of subpar gallops. Found to be lame following the second of those away days at Newbury, he missed his intended return in the Fighting Fifth Hurdle at Newcastle.
Despite his prodigious talent, it’s fair to say Constitution Hill had a few questions to answer on his long-awaited return, particularly as one of the winter’s major talking horses lay in wait amongst the opposition.
Hailing from the yard of British and Irish Champion Jumps trainer Willie Mullins, the mare Lossiemouth had barely put a hoof wrong in her career to date. The 10 previous outings had yielded nine victories, including an impressive five at the highest level. Much too good for Stayers’ Hurdle hero Teahupoo in the Hatton’s Grace Hurdle, could she claim the scalp of another Cheltenham Festival champ here?
She could not. And, in truth, she never looked like doing so. Taken out of her comfort zone from an early stage, Lossiemouth was being asked for more whilst Constitution Hill cruised around on the heels of Burdett Road and Lump Sum. Breezing into the lead over the second last, Nico de Boinville quickly opened up a decisive three-length advantage. Try as she might, Lossiemouth couldn’t bridge the gap as Nico de Boinville raised his arm aloft and Henderson shed a tear. This wasn’t quite vintage Constitution Hill, but it seems reasonable to assume that he may improve for the outing given all he has gone through in the past year.
Unsurprisingly, this result had a significant impact on the Champion Hurdle market. As big as 2/1 before the Christmas Hurdle, Constitution Hill is now odds-on across the board, whilst Lossiemouth is out to around 5/1 from a general 7/4.
Sir Gino Floors Ballyburn in Wayward Lad
Moving on to Friday’s Wayward Lad Novices’ Chase, the Henderson-trained Sir Gino appeared to face a stiff challenge as he made his delayed debut over fences. As impressive as his victory in the Fighting Fifth Hurdle was, the four-year-old was tasked with conquering one of the most talked about horses in training as he set out over fences for the first time.
Accompanying Lossiemouth on the journey over from Willie Mullins Closutton operation, Ballyburn arrived on a five-race winning streak. Having conquered the novice hurdle division with a trio of Grade 1 wins, headlined by a 13-length Gallagher Novices’ Hurdle rout, many expected him to repeat the feat over fences. Opening his chase account with another 13-length demolition of the field at Punchestown, he presented a mightily tall obstacle for Sir Gino to overcome.
Given the calibre of opposition, the subsequent display from Sir Gino was little short of jaw-dropping. Barring a niggly error at the first fence, the Mrs J Donnelly-owned star jumped immaculately. Taking up the lead at the seventh, Sir Gino never looked back, forging clear as Ballyburn began to crack. The winning margin at the line was not far short of eight lengths, with Nico de Boinville merely looking back over his shoulder rather than reaching for the whip.
Now unbeaten in six career outings, Sir Gino is the new odds-on favourite for the Arkle Chase. Ballyburn is out to a general 10/1 for that contest, having been as short as 3/1 before this defeat.
