Ante-post Look Ahead To Punchestown The Punchestown Festival is the final farewell for the National Hunt season in Ireland and Britain, with five days of stunning action at the Co Kildare home of Irish jumps racing from Tuesday 29th April — Saturday 3rd May. There are 40 races, including a dozen Grade 1 contests and a total prize pot of just over €3.5m, making the Punchestown experience truly peerless. As the big meeting at Punchestown looms large on the horizon, we're looking at two UK-based contenders that could be heading for Kildare. Punchestown Ante-post selection Boodles Champion Hurdle — Friday May 2nd - Constitution Hill @ 7/4 with bet365 Barberstown Castle Novice Chase — Thursday May 1st — Rubaud @ 20/1 with bet365 Odds courtesy of bet365 and correct at the time of publishing bet365 Punchestown Betting Offer If you have already signed up to bet365, check out more of the best betting sites and casino bonuses Henderson biding his time on decision Constitution Hill's intended Punchestown run hangs in the balance, according to trainer Nicky Henderson. Back-to-back falls at Cheltenham and Aintree have left Constitution Hill's unblemished record in smithereens and now the trainer and owner Michael Buckley must ponder, what next? Henderson says a "crucial" piece of work this week will provide the answer as to whether or not Constitution Hill takes his place in the Boodles Champion Hurdle at Punchestown on Friday week. Henderson said: "Constitution Hill will have one piece of work, like he would do ten days before any other race, and Nico [de Boinville] will ride him. We're very keen to run, but if it's not up to his very high standards, then he won't be able to. I hope we'll be able to go." If Constitution Hill does not reappear at Punchestown, he will be put away for next season after two victories and two tumbles from four starts this term. "His one piece of work will determine whether we do or we don't go. It's very simple. If he's 100 per cent, he'll go, but if he's 98 per cent, he won't. That gallop is going to be crucial and everything hinges on that. He's been cantering since, but we'll see," Henderson told the Nick Luck podcast. UK raiders on the radar Sticking with the UK raider theme, it looks as though Paul Nicholls will be targeting the Grade 1 Barberstown Castle Novice Chase with Rubaud. Stable jockey Harry Cobden has suggested he'll be heading to Punchestown for that ride and the outgoing UK champion is going to stay in Ireland for the full five-day meeting. "It's very easy to sit back and let things happen and not worry about it. I don't think it's very difficult to put a bit of effort in and make yourself more available and try and go for those decent spares at those big meetings on the other side of the water," he told Sporting Life. It will be interesting to see how that pans out. Cobden has ridden a couple of very high profile winners for Willie Mullins in recent weeks and all eyes will be on him in Ireland. Rubaud was a gutsy winner of the Ladbrokes Pendil Novices' Chase at Kempton in February before finishing fifth as Impaire Et Passe won the Manifesto Novices' Chase at Aintree at the start of this month. That Mullins-trained winner is unlikely to be at Punchestown, though Majborough could spearhead a strong Closutton representation.
