What Next For Constitution Hill After the Undefeated Hurdler Wins Again?

Among the winners during Cheltenham Trials Day last Saturday was Constitution Hill who beat four other hopefuls in the Unibet (International) Hurdle. That win made it ten victories from ten for the Nicky Henderson-trained runner, who has already been called one of the greatest hurdlers of all time. What more can we expect from the eight-year-old this season though and just how good is he?

Constitution Hill So Far

Date Race Course SP Pos.
4/12/21 Novices’ Hurdle Sandown 85/40 1st
8/1/22 Novices’ Hurdle Sandown 2/5F 1st
15/3/22 Supreme Novices’ Hurdle Cheltenham 9/4JF 1st
26/11/22 Fighting Fifth Hurdle Newcastle 1/4F 1st
26/12/22 Christmas Hurdle Kempton 1/7F 1st
14/3/23 Champion Hurdle Cheltenham 4/11F 1st
13/4/23 Aintree Hurdle Aintree 2/15F 1st
26/12/23 Christmas Hurdle Kempton 1/12F 1st
26/12/24 Christmas Hurdle Kempton 5/6F 1st
25/1/25 International Hurdle Cheltenham 1/12F 1st

Constitution Hill made his debut at Sandown in December 2021. Although this is the only race he has not set off as favourite (or joint favourite) he was an 85/40 second favourite. Even this price proved far too generous though as the then four-year-old destroyed the field, winning by a huge 14 lengths.

Further emphatic victories followed – a 12-length win again at Sandown followed by a 22-length triumph in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle, which saw impressive stablemate Jonbon as runner-up. Then came a pair of double-digit length victories over Epatante, either side of Christmas, first in the Fighting Fifth and second in the Christmas Hurdle.

As you can see, Constitution Hill is not just a horse that wins, but often does so with a large degree of comfort. His shortest margin of victory came during this season’s return where he only finished two-and-half lengths clear of Lossiemouth in the Christmas Hurdle. This should not be seen as a sign that Nicky Henderson’s horse is on the decline though. Not only is Lossiemouth an extremely good hurdler who was enjoying a six-race winning streak, but Constitution Hill was making his return following a long absence.

The son of Blue Bresil had gone a full year without racing, partly due to an unsatisfactory blood test in March followed by wind surgery in May. There had been little evidence of any wind problems but in any case, Constitution Hill showed no ill-effects of the surgery upon his return. He did, however, experience an extremely rare wobble on his most recent start, which was the Cheltenham win at the end of January.

Hill Survives Scare At Cheltenham

Setting off at the tiny price of 1/12, the Unibet Hurdle at Cheltenham was expected to be a walk in the park for Constitution Hill. Everything was going to script as the small field approached the last flight, with the race favourite leading comfortably, but then a rare mistake occurred. Rather than leaping over the final hurdle, Constitution Hull rather bulldozed his way through it. Despite this heart-in-mouth moment, he continued with little more than a stumble and cantered his way to victory.

It was a surprise to see the normally very reliable jumper make such an uncharacteristic mistake but there is little cause for concern. In a post-race interview, Nico De Boinville simply put it down to the race being so easy, stating that Constitution Hill was half-asleep and that he would not expect such a lazy ‘jump’ in a more competitive affair. If anything, the strength and balance the horse showed despite clattering the obstacle is just a further sign of how classy he is.

Cheltenham Festival Chances

Champion Hurdle 2025 Betting

We expect to see Constitution Hill next in action during the upcoming Cheltenham Festival where he is due to take part in the Champion Hurdle. The 2023 winner was not given the opportunity to defend his crown last year following an unsatisfactory blood test taken after a poor training gallop in the build-up to the big event. Assuming he can avoid illness this time around, the eight-year-old will no doubt be the big favourite to win the Champion Hurdle for the second time.

He currently heads the early betting, generally trading around 4/5 and you would not want to bet against him. His two main rivals appear to be Lossiemouth, who he recently bested at the Christmas Hurdle and Brighterdaysahead who he is yet to battle. The latter finished runner-up in the Mare’s Novices Hurdle last year but has improved noticeably since then, recording four graded wins on the bounce.

While both Brighterdaysahead and Lossiemouth are very talented horses, this is Constitution Hill’s race to lose and he will surely be first past the post if he can avoid any major mistakes. The going at Cheltenham will surely not prove too significant either as the brilliant horse has shown capable of running on all types of ground. After the Festival, the only race likely to be considered is the Aintree Hurdle in April. It’s a contest Henderson sent him to in 2023, resulting in a win, and the £250k prize will again offer appeal despite the longer distance (2m 4f).