After last year’s nightmare at Cheltenham, when a virus devastatingly ripped through his Seven Barrows yard and wiped out the majority of his big guns, Nicky Henderson would have been hoping to avoid any setbacks in the build-up to this year’s Festival.
Things appeared to go smoothly for the veteran trainer, especially with Constitution Hill back firing after fears the star hurdler may never race again when he picked up life-threatening colic. However, Henderson delivered a crushing blow when he revealed that Sir Gino will miss Cheltenham.
The five-year-old was the overwhelming favourite in the Arkle odds at 8/11 but picked up a wound near his hind leg during routine training earlier this month, forcing him to miss a prep race at Newbury, but it didn’t initially seem to be too much of a concern.
That changed a few days later when Henderson revealed on X that Sir Gino’s situation had deteriorated. He was admitted to the equine hospital, and Henderson added that the injury would require lengthy treatment and that the horse would miss the rest of the season.
It’s the second year in a row that Sir Gino misses the Cheltenham Festival. He was the favourite for the Triumph Hurdle 12 months ago before contracting the yard’s virus, and he’s been forced to miss out again this year.
But the Festival will go on without him once more, and what does this mean for the Arkle? Well, it’s hardly blown the day one contest wide open, as Majborough has since swooped in as the new odds-on favourite with a price of 4/7.
The Willie Mullins-trained five-year-old is no stranger to picking up the scraps in Sir Gino’s absence after landing the Triumph Hurdle from 6/1 last year, and he looks like the likeliest to win the Arkle based on his form this campaign.
Majborough is two for two since making the switch to fences, with his win in the Irish Arkle at the Dublin Racing Festival at the start of the month particularly noteworthy as he followed up on his six-length Beginners Chase win on debut with an impressive nine-length victory at Leopardstown.
He certainly sets the bar following the withdrawal of Sir Gino, but British challenger L’Eau du Sud could throw a spanner in the mix for Dan Skelton.
The seven-year-old won just two of his 12 outings over hurdles but has improved drastically since switching to the larger obstacles this campaign.
Part-owned by Sir Alex Ferguson, L’Eau du Sud kicked off the season with an 11-length win in a Handicap Chase at Stratford and has followed up with three Graded wins in succession—including an 11-length win in an Arkle Trial over course and distance and a victory at the top-level victory in the Henry VIII Novices' Chase at Sandown in December.
Given that Skelton’s runner has more experience over fences and boasts a win over the Arkle’s course and distance, he can certainly throw down a challenge to Majborough in the prestigious novice Grade 1. But Majborough’s form perhaps reads better with that Irish Arkle win.
Mistergif, another horse trained by Mullins, is next in line in the horse race betting at 8/1. However, he’s had just one start over the more demanding obstacles when winning a Beginners Chase late last month, so questions remain over his ability at this level.
