'I couldn't use Cheltenham as a prep' - Buveur D'Air inches closer to return

Officials at Kelso have welcomed the news that Buveur D'Air, the Champion Hurdle hero in 2017 and 2018, is an intended runner in next week's bet365 Morebattle Hurdle.

The £100,000 event, which is Scotland's richest hurdle race, offers a bonus of that value for connections of the winner should they follow up at the Cheltenham Festival – something The Shunter achieved last year when landing the Paddy Power Plate.

However, Buveur D'Air will not chase the bonus and instead will be targeted at the Betway Aintree Hurdle at the Grand National meeting in April.

Morebattle Hurdle entries and betting

The 11-year-old was fourth in the Grade 1 contest last term but suffered a setback which has kept him off the track since.

"He's in fantastic form," said Nicky Henderson, who trains the eight-time Grade 1 winner for JP McManus.

"He worked extremely well on Saturday and the plan is to go to Kelso next week. He wasn't quite ready to run last weekend, but worked really well on Saturday, although he did have a good blow.

"I'm trying to get him ready for the Aintree Hurdle and I couldn't use the Champion Hurdle as a prep. We wanted to start at two miles and then go up to two and a half miles with a fresh horse. He really did work well for a gentleman of his age at the weekend. It was lovely to watch and he had his ears pricked.

Nicky Henderson: will seek a fourth success in the Morebattle with Buveur D'AirCredit: Edward Whitaker

"He ran a great race at Aintree last year and then had a problem which kept him out of Punchestown. That was a shame, but JP's team have done a great job at Martinstown Stud getting him going again. He hasn't been in that long but he did a lot of work over there and came here in great nick."

Henderson has won the Morebattle three times, although not all of his memories of the Scottish contest are fond ones, with Zaynar beaten when sent off a 1-14 shot in 2010.

Kelso managing director Jonathan Garrett said: "It would be really exciting to have Buveur D'Air, a dual Champion Hurdle winner, running in what we hope is a very competitive handicap.

"This is exactly the sort of race we wanted to create when we changed the conditions ahead of last year. We moved the date from February to March and made it a handicap again after being a conditions race for many years and attracting relatively small fields, although Nicky Henderson farmed a few. It's great he's lending his weight to it in its new guise.

"We knew the bonus was doable as Master Tern won the Premier Hurdle on this card before winning the County Hurdle 13 days later. We knew it was possible and, sure enough, The Shunter won the bonus in its first year.

Last year's winner The Shunter (blue) picked up the £100,000 bonus after festival gloryCredit: John Grossick (racingpost.com/photos)

"It adds another dimension to the race and gets people excited. £100,000, plus the prize-money for winning the Morebattle [£51,440], makes it a substantial pot. If you've got a decent two-mile hurdler this race should be on your horizon."

Although Henderson expressed concerns about Kelso's ground following a recent meeting, Garrett added: "We have saved several metres of fresh ground on all of the bends for this meeting. I'm keen to get that point across because anyone who has been watching the telly has probably thought, 'Ooh'.

"When you're racing in January and February they're going to make a bit of a mess but we've completely fresh running lines for Morebattle day."

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