Lambourn view: romantics might have gone chasing - but hard-nosed locals guessed what was coming with Constitution Hill

This week was always likely to be a decisive one in the career of Constitution Hill, who will stay over hurdles this term. His trainer Nicky Henderson hosts his annual owners' lunch on Sunday, so holding on to the news until then seemed unlikely. 

Henderson told me a week ago he would announce the news before then, so I set about gathering intelligence, even though one always imagined he would remain hurdling.

You might get a Guinness out of Johnny 'The Fish' Ferrand, one of Henderson's oldest friends, but no tasty scoops were forthcoming when I grilled him at our regular lunch-time pint-stop at The Queens Arms in East Garston.

The same could be said of Henderson's eldest daughter Sarah, when I saw her on Sunday as the party for Tom Fillery's marriage to Clive Cox's secretary Alice Jefford – seemingly the racing wedding of the year – continued at a gallop Constitution Hill would be proud of.

Constitution Hill (Sean O'Briain, right) breezes past First Street (James Bowen) on the Faringdon Road winter gallops last seasonCredit: Edward Whitaker

There, the consensus, from people well schooled in the industry, was that there was no reason for connections to go chasing when they appeared to have multiple Champion Hurdles within their grasp.

It was a similar feeling down at Harry Fry's recently when some of his staff mused on it, taking the opposite view of what the romantic fan might do. But then hardened professionals see this as their bread and butter, and there will be jam to add to the feast should Constitution Hill continue what he's been doing.

I suspect toing and froing over the decision did not lead to agonising, although Henderson did tease when he said two proofs for his owners' day brochure were produced; one for hurdling and one for chasing.

Chasing would certainly have been a fun story to tell, but we're still in store for more glorious chapters from the best horse in the game.

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