'I need a miler to work with him!' - Constitution Hill gears up for Cheltenham Festival in style

Red-hot Champion Hurdle favourite Constitution Hill sailed through his latest workout for the Cheltenham Festival at Kempton on Tuesday morning, although his superiority over his stablemates had Nicky Henderson lamenting the fact his Seven Barrows yard does not contain a champion miler or another horse to match his pace.

Unbeaten in five starts and no bigger than 4-11 to win the Unibet Champion Hurdle, the six-year-old was one of nine horses Henderson brought to Kempton from his Lambourn base for their annual awayday on the all-weather and he did a passable impression of the aeroplanes from nearby Heathrow when he took off from Captain Morgs and Ahorsewithnoname.

Nico de Boinville did the steering on the son of Blue Bresil, whose owner Michael Buckley was on hand to watch his pride and joy.

"That was good," said Henderson, who holds the record for Champion Hurdle winners and will be bidding for his ninth on March 14 . "I've been hunting the country for a miler who I was going to get to jump in halfway down the back straight, but I couldn't find one. I haven't got one and Michael is going to have to buy me one!

"To be fair, the other two riders [Daryl Jacob on Ahorsewithnoname and Paul O'Brien on Captain Morgs] did a very good job because they did their own thing and Nico did his own thing. It was two bits of work happening at once.

"He loves doing this and enjoys it. He's fit and will have another bit of work at home, but it's quite difficult without the grass at the moment, so Barney [Clifford, clerk of the course] lets us come and do this and I love doing it too; all the horses have had a nice time."

In electric chasers Sprinter Sacre and Altior, the trainer possessed horses capable of exceptional bits of work, although they had high-class gallop companions in Simonsig and Brain Power.

"If you have two very good work horses together, you have to have two seriously good riders and with Sprinter and Simonsig we had Nico and Jerry McGrath, who would let them do enough, but not too much – you can wreck horses doing too much.

"Brain Power was useful for Altior and we have horses to work with Constitution Hill, but it's not really the best way of training them because he is better than them. Sprinter and Simonsig, for instance, would complement each other, but – at home – Constitution Hill is just better than the others."

Constitution Hill: "just better than the others" says trainer Nicky HendersonCredit: Alan Crowhurst (Getty Images)

De Boinville has won Champion Chases on Sprinter Sacre and Altior, but Constitution Hill is the best hurdler he has sat on.

Sporting a fluorescent yellow jacket to make identifying jump racing's newest superstar an easy task, he said: "I was very happy. We've been gearing up to this and it's a nice hurdle to get over. It's a nice awayday to sharpen him up mentally and physically and they have a nice time; everything goes round hard on the bridle as much as possible.

"That was the plan today and it's difficult because you almost need a really good Flat horse to work with him. He's very relaxed and sensible, so won't do too much. The difference with Sprinter was having Simonsig to work with, so you had a horse of a certain level to go with him, while Brain Power was a very good work horse too, but we haven't got that for Constitution Hill, although that speaks more about him, and you don't want to ruin the Cheltenham preparation of anything else."

State Man is 11-4 for the Champion Hurdle and is Constitution Hill's main rival according to the market.

"I've been impressed with him," added De Boinville. "I thought I Like To Move It was very good in the Kingwell and Nigel Twiston-Davies keeps telling me he's going to serve it up to us, but Constitution Hill would be my best chance at the festival. Sprinter and Altior were chasers and he's my first top-class Champion Hurdle horse and he's the ultimate professional. He's obviously got a massive engine and so many good horses have quirks, but he doesn't seem to have any."

Buckley was also satisfied with the exercise, saying: "I'm happy to see the horse looks cheerful and Nico and Nicky are happy. You pray they just get there in good shape and he looked in good shape today."

Unibet Champion Hurdle (3.30, March 14)

Unibet: 1-3 Constitution Hill, 5-2 State Man, 10 Vauban, 14 I Like To Move It, 33 Epatante, Echoes In Rain, 40 Honeysuckle, 50 bar

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