The use of racecourse gallops, especially those that are open to the media and public, are something that really splits debate.
I’m not a massive fan of them, and I don’t think they give us a lot of information, but the Nicky Henderson team took part in one on Tuesday morning at Kempton (Feb 25), setting his team up for the Cheltenham Festival.
Henderson sent plenty of runners to Kempton as he looked to put the final touches to their preparation for the meeting, which takes place in two weeks, and he left the course very happy.
There were no shocks, as we saw when Constitution Hill struggled in his gallop last year, he was the opposite and came clearly away better than expected this time around.
Plenty of other runners were on show in the morning, and you can’t help but think that the team are in much better shape than last year. Of course, many will remember the troubles that Henderson suffered last year, pulling many runners from the meeting and seeing others disappoint due to a bug in his yard.
Constitution Hill Set for Champion Hurdle Bid
Odds on favourite for the Champion Hurdle, Constitution Hill, is set to try and regain his crown in two weeks, with a final strong piece of work at Kempton racecourse.
When winning the Christmas Hurdle, I’ll be honest and say I didn’t expect to see him again until the Champion Hurdle. But we’ve seen him run on Cheltenham Trials Day and now seen him go to Kempton.
Did we learn much? Not really, but we did learn that he wasn’t struggling like last year, so in terms of his health and fitness, you’d have to say it’s pretty spot on. You can never tell much from how a horse moves in these gallops, but jockey body language can give away some clues, and Nico de Boinville looked pretty happy on board.
CONSTITUTION HILL powers home at Kempton ⚪️⚫️ pic.twitter.com/Z0NMWd0XeS
— Racing Post (@RacingPost) February 25, 2025
When climbing off the horse, de Boinville remarked that he couldn’t be happier with the horse, while trainer Henderson called him ‘frightening’ to the waiting media after his display.
That’s probably a little farfetched after beating two horses rated 126, but Henderson can be allowed to feel positivity and relief after the troubles on this day last year.
Elsewhere, both of Henderson’s Triumph Hurdle hopes, favourite Lulamba and outsider Palladium, were both in action, but in different groups, keeping them apart for now. However, Henderson will have to decide between them soon.
The third favourite for the Stayers Hurdle, Lucky Place, came home ahead of Lulamba, with Henderson signalling that horse as one that really pleased him on the day. You wonder if he thought Lulamba would have too much speed for Lucky Place.
It’s all ifs and buts, and we don’t even know the weights which each runner was carrying, but with two weeks to go until the Cheltenham Festival, we’ll take every clue we can get our hands on.