Horse profile: Constitution Hill

Day one of the Cheltenham Festival is going to focus largely on the fate of Constitution Hill and, to some degree or another, his main Champion Hurdle rivals.

Nicky Henderson's stable star is returning to the Champion Hurdle stage after missing out last year.

He remains unbeaten in his career and is widely regarded as a generational talent by many onlookers. The 2025 Champion Hurdle has the potential to be a defining moment in his career.

Getting here

For Constitution Hill, getting here has been both easy and extremely challenging at the same time.

On the racecourse, things have come easy. He's got a perfect 10 wins on his record and no horse so far has looked remotely close to getting the better of him.

At the Cheltenham Festival it has been particularly seamless. He broke the track record in a 22-length Supreme Novices' win in 2022 and then won the Champion Hurdle a year later by nine-lengths as Nico de Boinville allowed him to coast home.

He followed up at Aintree over 2m4f and retained the Christmas Hurdle at Kempton that same year in facile style.

Then he missed a year off the track, with various niggling issues stemming after he had disappointed in a racecourse gallop at Kempton last year.

Prep runs

After 366 days out, Constitution Hill was back at Kempton for the Christmas Hurdle on Boxing Day where he brushed off the attentions of Lossiemouth readily.

He followed up at this track on Trials Day, despite a scare at the final flight, seeing off Brentford Hope by three-lengths.

It's 10-10 for Constitution Hill so far and Henderson described a recent racecourse gallop at Kempton as 'frightening'.

The opposition

This promises to be the toughest test of his career. The outstanding mare Brighterdaysahead — with just a lone defeat on her CV — has been confirmed for this target as opposed to the Mares' race earlier on day one.

Lossiemouth comes for another crack, despite a big fall in the Irish Champion Hurdle last month, a mishap that left the door wide open for State Man.

He, of course, won this contest 12 months ago when Constitution Hill was confined to barracks at Seven Barrows, but he has looked fallible in Ireland this season and has some scores to settle with Brighterdaysahead.

There is, though, little doubt that the Irish trio will ask serious questions of de Boinville and his unbeaten partner.

The verdict

Some will knock Constitution Hill as he has 'only' had 10 runs so far, taking a dim view of comparisons with the likes of Hurricane Fly and Istabraq as the great two-mile hurdlers of the modern era.

This is his chance to silence the doubters, by defeating three genuinely high-class rivals.

State Man came up short when they met two years ago, but Lossiemouth and Brighterdaysahead bring depth to the day one feature.

There's reason to believe Lossiemouth didn't give her running at Christmas and Willie Mullins thinks she is tailor-made for this race.

Brighterdaysahead was breathtaking at Leopardstown in December and is the rival everyone has wanted to see squaring off with Constitution Hill — a Cheltenham wish that has been granted. May the best horse win.

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