Festival Trials Day exclusive: Nicky Henderson on his top team

It has already been a January to savour for trainer Nicky Henderson, but it could be about to become a whole lot better for one of National Hunt racing’s most revered trainers at Cheltenham on Saturday. 

There was plenty for the Seven Barrows master to get excited about during the weekend just gone, most notably with the mighty Jonbon bringing the house down when successfully defending his crown in the BetMGM Clarence House Chase crown at Ascot to secure a remarkable 11th Grade One victory. 

If that wasn’t enough Henderson also had the pleasure of watching Old Park Star demolish his rivals from afar in the Grade Two Sky Bet Supreme Trial Rossington Main Novices’ Hurdle to strengthen his Cheltenham Festival claims. 

And these victories came just seven days after one time Unibet Champion Hurdle contender Iberico Lord rolled back the years at Kempton Park when springing a 22-1 surprise in the Coral Lanzarote Handicap Hurdle. 

But as we know nothing stands still in this sport for long and the action ramps up another notch during a bumper eight-race card that makes up Festival Trials Day.

And with the likes of Unibet Champion Hurdle favourite Sir Gino heading what looks like a strong team set to represent Henderson on the day there is every chance it will be his name that steals the headlines once again. 

Henderson said: “It was great last weekend. It was great to see the old boy Jonbon, who is now ten, and at the wrong end of the age scale, like us, do what he did in the Clarence House Chase. 

“Then you have the other lad, Old Park Star, who is very much at the beginning of his career, and to do what he did was great and exciting for the future. 

“So far that was probably one of our best weekends of the season, but then we had Iberico Lord win the Lanzarote Hurdle the weekend before. 

"They are rocking and rolling, but things move on and we now have to look forward to Cheltenham and hopefully  things will carry on going well there."

“He has still got a little bit to do this week, but he is in there and we are all set to go for it. 

“I think it was a very good performance in the Christmas Hurdle. He has been very solid so far, but the tests get trickier each time.

“He is potentially a very high class horse , and he is getting there, but he is super talented. 

“I think it was an easy decision to keep him over hurdles after that win at Kempton Park and it seemed the obvious thing to do from our point of view. 

“He is still very young. We moved into chasing for a very good reason last season and we have brought him back to hurdles for what I think is quite a good reason this season. 

“He is definitely not a super sub anymore, but he wasn’t really that anyway. He stepped into the Fighting Fifth last season and he stepped away from the Christmas Hurdle again for obvious reasons so he went chasing. 

“That was a stunning performance he put in over fences at Kempton Park and he will go back chasing again one day there is no doubt about that. 

“The horse deserves all this success as he had a torrid time in the spring before he was supposed to run in the Game Spirit last season. 

“It is probably the dress rehearsal for the English horses going for the Champion Hurdle. We have beaten the mare (Golden Ace), but The New Lion is the young buck, like us, then you have got all the Irish lot to join in yet. 

"This race might decide how it is going this side of the water, but I’m not sure it will quite sort out the whole picture just yet. 

“He made the running at Kempton Park, but that was because he was too fresh and too gassy. He doesn’t have to make the running that is for sure as he has got all the gears in the world. It will be interesting to see how it pans out.”

“He has got to finish the week off on the right note, but if he does then the Cleeve is very much the plan for him. He has very much taken his form to new levels this season, but I think the step up to three miles has been the difference. 

“His form at the back end of last season in the Coral Cup, at Aintree and then at Punchestown was solid. He did all three meetings and finished in the first four in each of them. 

“He just couldn’t get the goal, but having given him three miles he is now a different boy.

“He is very lazy at home and he does nothing. You wouldn’t know that he has got any talent at all, but that is fine as we love them doing it that way. The only trouble is if they don’t work that hard you have got to keep at them that little bit more. 

“Rather than keep on galloping I’m minded to run him again. He doesn’t need to run for experience or anything like that, but he is fit, and is well, and he might as well run here as opposed to keep on galloping for another five weeks here. 

“He enjoys it and it keeps his mind on the go as well. 

“I was surprised and impressed with him when he stepped up in trip at Aintree and he has just continued stepping up from there. 

“He will have a penalty to carry and that does add a different dimension to the race, but he is in good form.”

“He is just a very nice young horse that happens to be in the same ownership as Old Park Star.

“I thought he ran a hell of a race at Newbury last time and it looked to me as if he was looking for two and a half miles so that is what we are doing with him. 

“I don’t expect to have to make the running with him this time. I don’t think it affected the result last time. He is a big baby and he was learning as he went around. 

“The other horse, (Minella Yoga), getting all that weight was able to sit in the slip stream and get a joy ride. You try running with a stone and a bit extra on your back, then you will know what he was trying to achieve, which was nearly impossible. 

“There is no doubt Minella Yoga is a good horse. I know his history as I saw him at the sales and I loved him. In my opinion we were always going to be up against it. 

“It was very early days in the season when I thought this lad was going to be the two miler, but I didn’t know them that well then.

“It looked as though he might be quicker than the other, but it has transpired it is the opposite to those first impressions, which it often can be. 

“Both Act Of Innocence and Old Park Star worked together last week so they help each other rather than hinder each other.

“This will be different to Newbury, but then we said the same about Old Park Star going from Cheltenham to Haydock Park as you can’t get more opposites than that. 

“It didn’t bother him if he was going up and down hills or if he was going along where it was flat as a pancake, and I don’t see any reason why that won’t apply to Act Of Innocence so I'm hopeful of another good run."

“He will come along and join the party. He loves it. He has been handicapped out of it, not surprisingly as he won the Pertemps, and he was second at Punchestown when he swapped around with Jeriko (Du Reponet). 

“I’ve not even tried to qualify him for the Pertemps. Me and Kenny (Alexander, owner) discussed things over the weekend and he is happy with what he is doing as he is running very well. 

“He runs for charity (My Name'5 Doddie Foundation) so we are keen to raise as much money for them as possible. The horse enjoys it and he is working for a good cause. 

“If the best way of winning prizemoney is finishing second, third or fourth in a graded race then so be it, as there is good prizemoney to be picked up in those races. 

“I expect we will throw him in the Stayers’ Hurdle as there is nothing else for him to do. One of these races will fall onto his plate sooner or later.”

“The plan is to take Califet En Vol back to Cheltenham for what will be his third start over fences there. He was in the process of going close last time out before hitting the last, but he is coming along nicely. 

“I thought his first run over fences there was very good. He slightly over raced as there were only three runners. This will be his third run over fences and we are out there to try and win this first before we think about anything else.

“He has been very good schooling and that is why we launched him at Cheltenham for his first run over fences, which is something I’m never keen on doing as I think it is a big test for a young horse.”

“If the weather plays ball then Feel Gut will go to Huntingdon as opposed to Cheltenham.

“We were going to run him at Newbury last week, but his tract wash wasn’t quite clean, however we have done it again and it seems fine so off we go to Huntingdon, I hope. 

“He is only a baby and he hasn’t won or anything. He is very much a horse for next season.

“He ran a very good race only his sole start behind one that Willie (Mullins) now has.”

“The plan is to send Manlaga to Doncaster for a Listed race there as opposed to running her at Cheltenham, however this race is there to fall back on. 

“I’m not quite sure why she has been such a talking horse as she has only had the one run, but she is a sweet filly. 

“She won her race well enough. She does everything you ask of her, and no more, or no less. 

“Those Auteuil hurdle races are classed as a Grade Two so unless you go into a decent race you have to carry a ten pound penalty. That is a massive penalty for a smallish filly, with little experience. To walk into a normal race giving them ten pounds is difficult. 

“We have waited for this as it is a fillies’ juvenile hurdle, and it is a Listed race, so it is the obvious race for her, with only a three pound penalty.”