Sky Bet Supreme Novices' Hurdle: Shishkin edges out Abracadabras

Shishkin edged out Abacadabras by a head in the Sky Bet Supreme Novices’ Hurdle as to the 2020 Cheltenham Festival got under way with a thrilling finish.

A field of 15 went to post for the traditional Festival curtain-raiser, with the Willie Mullins-trained Asterion Forlonge sent off the 9-4 favourite.

The grey made much of the running under Paul Townend, but jumped increasingly violently to his right, impeding some of his rivals, then at the second-last flight Elixir D’Ainay exited just as he had hit the front, bringing down Captain Guinness in the process.

So impressive in winning his last two starts, Nicky Henderson’s Shishkin had long been towards the top of ante-post lists, but drifted out to 6/1 in the final hours before the race.

Despite never travelling with much fluency, he began to make inroads on the leaders racing down the hill and tracked the strong-travelling Abacadabras into the home straight.

The pair settled down to fight it out on the run-in and flashed by the post almost as one, before the judged confirmed the Nico de Boinville-ridden Shishkin the winner by a head.

The winner’s stable companion, Chantry House, was 11 lengths back in third.

The winning rider said: "It wasn't a very nice experience, to be honest - everything that could go wrong did go wrong. It just shows what a fantastic horse this is going forward - he has got so much ability, and I'm looking forward to him going chasing.

"That's his first time in a big field like that in front of a big crowd - it was just a case of finding where and when he could travel. I pulled him back down the hill just to give him a bit of light and get him back on the bridle, and then he's just taken me into the straight."

Henderson's Festival had needed an early boost, after he'd had to rule Altior out of Wednesday's Queen Mother Champion Chase because of lameness.

He said: "We say it every year that something will come and bite you - and sadly this year it was Altior - so it's a relief to begin with a winner.

"I couldn't see what was happening to Shishkin coming down the hill - he got slightly hampered coming, and Barry (Geraghty) looked in the right place on Chantry House.

"But Shishkin has got those gears - and he needed them."

Elliott added of his runner-up: "He has done everything right there - but he has just ended up being beaten by a better horse on the day.

"We are kind of disappointed he didn't win, but we have no excuses."