Nicky Henderson guides us through his team for Kempton over Christmas including Chantry House and Epatante.
Big test for Chantry House
Nicky Henderson believes that Chantry House will have to take a step up on what he showed as a novice and be “very sharp” if he is to win what looks a red hot renewal of the Grade One Ladbrokes King George VI Chase at Kempton Park on Boxing Day.
The Seven Barrows trainer has won the prestigious three-mile contest three times in his career with Long Run (2010, 2012) and Might Bite (2017). And, describing it as “the second most important classic chase of the season”, Henderson has confirmed he hopes to run both Chantry House and Mister Fisher in his bid to win it for a third time.
Explaining the significance of the Ladbrokes King George VI Chase – the second leg of The Jockey Club Chase Triple Crown, which includes the Betfair Chase and the Cheltenham Gold Cup – he said: “We’ve had some very good days in the King George, we’ve won it and had some unlucky ones a few times and to me it’s the second most important classic chase of the season.
“It’s the classic for the first half of the season, so not surprisingly it’s a race that everybody wants to win. It’s a race with a terrific history, I can remember the days of Arkle which makes me pretty ancient!”
Seven-year-old Chantry House enjoyed a glittering first campaign over the larger obstacles last term, winning at both the Cheltenham Festival and the following month’s Randox Grand National Festival, and will arrive at Kempton Park on the back of a commanding victory on reappearance at Sandown Park last month.
However, that most recent success saw Chantry House defeat just one rival and Henderson is under no illusions that his charge will need to find another gear in a race which is set to include last season’s Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Minella Indo, two-time King George winner Clan Des Obeaux and Frodon who was triumphant in the race 12 months ago.
Henderson said: “He’s been very good since his run at Sandown. It was a two horse race though, which proved nothing to anybody who was looking for a fault or anything. He went round in a very respectable time considering he was doing it on his own, so you couldn’t be happier with him, while he had a spin on a racecourse which really woke him up last week.
“You’re going to have to be very sharp here. Three miles around Kempton is different and my plus for him is that until Aintree last season he was doing all of his racing and winning over two and a half miles, including round Kempton, so he’s not a slow three mile horse.
“We upped him to three miles at Aintree and he got it well and although it was a ‘solo’ around Sandown last month he was very good. We haven’t taught him to be a three miler but he has got natural pace – if you can go two and a half miles you’ve got some – and with that it helps you around Kempton because they’ll go quick. If they’re going quicker than Frodon they’ll be going too quick, but the good thing about Chantry is that pace isn’t going to frighten him.
“He’s only just out of novice company, so I would say that he will need to step up on last year. We’re taking on Gold Cup winners and previous King George winners and we don’t know anything about those coming out of novice company. He didn’t beat anything at Sandown but I’m not complaining about that, we’ve often used the Ladbrokes Trophy for our second season chasers but we rather felt that it wasn’t the place for him.
“If you’re thinking you have a King George horse you’d be hoping to progress to a Gold Cup. He’s a very laid back horse, which I think is in his favour, and I’m not worried that he isn’t quick enough.”
When asked about his views on the opposition this Sunday, Henderson admitted you can make cases for most of Chantry House’s rivals.
He explained: “I’ve got respect for everyone in the field, but I still think that the Gold Cup is undoubtedly the best guide. You’d always say the best guide to the Derby is the Guineas and if you’re coming into this I think last year’s Gold Cup winner is the horse we’ve all got to watch. Frodon as we all know is a tough old devil - he’s very hard to beat and you could have a lot of solutions so it’s a great race on paper.
“Willie (Mullins) is going to come over with a couple and Asterion Forlonge is pretty smart too – I know he tipped up the other day but he ran a pretty good race. He belongs to Joe Donnelly who owns Shishkin, so I know the horse quite well. He is a good horse though and I think he could be a challenger.”
Henderson could well be double-handed in the Grade One contest and will send out Mister Fisher, who got within a neck of Frodon when last seen on a racecourse at Sandown Park in April, if he impresses on the gallops today (Tuesday 21st December).
His trainer explained: “We’ve had some issues with Mister Fisher and his work was uncharacteristically lacklustre. I called in the vets two months ago and he had a fibrillating heart, which is not a nice problem to have. We got this corrected reasonably quickly after about three days, but it put us on the back foot and you’ve got to make up for that. The Mister Fisher we know is back now though, it’s incredible and you wouldn’t believe it was possible.
“I would have liked to have gone from the Peterborough Chase to the King George with him. To me the Peterborough was always a race that’s made for him and although we couldn’t get there he’s a horse that has flown back into the picture.
“It’s a pretty unorthodox preparation, I have to say. He’s very good though and he looked as though he had Frodon beaten at Sandown on the last day of last season, so there’s not a lot of difference between the two. I’ve always wanted to try him over three miles but he needs to come through a gallop on Tuesday morning if he is to run. I know James and Jean Potter are keen to run and if he works really well he will run - and James Bowen will be on him.”
Epatante Christmas cracker
Boxing Day’s Kempton Park card also includes the Grade One Ladbrokes Christmas Hurdle, in which Epatante is aiming to add to her victory in 2019. Tritonic could also line up for Henderson following her success in Saturday’s Grade Three Betfair Hurdle at Ascot.
The seven year old was defeated in this race 12 months ago, but she made a winning reappearance when dead-heating with Not So Sleepy in the Fighting Fifth Hurdle at Newcastle earlier this month. And Henderson feels she is in a good place, adding that Nico de Boinville will step in for the suspended Aidan Coleman.
He said: “I’m very happy after Newcastle, everything up to that point had gone well and as you could see she travelled well and jumped beautifully. She just had a little bit of a bumpy passage from the second last to the last flight and while we’ll settle for a dead heat, the most pleasing thing was the way that she had run, travelled and jumped.
“Her hallmark is her jumping and that’s where she was when she won the Fighting Fifth last year. That was missing at Kempton last year but I am very happy with where we are. Aidan Coleman is banned, so Nico de Boinville will be riding her.
“Tritonic is interesting on the back of a very good run in a competitive race on Sunday. It’s a quick turnaround here for a four year old possibly but he’s a very high-class horse. Not So Sleepy dead heated with us last time so we’ve got a little score to settle, but I’m sad to see no Silver Streak this year and I send my commiserations to everyone. He’s been a terrific servant and it’s very sad what happened.”
When asked about Epatante’s chances of regaining her Champion Hurdle crown next March, Henderson conceded that last season’s winner Honeysuckle will take some stopping.
He added: “My gut feeling is that she could be back and I’m not going to come out with excuses anyway. Based on her demeanour I just think she’s back, her work is good and she’s in a good place, so we’re happy with where we are. She didn’t need to go to a racecourse last week as she’d had a good race at Newcastle and it’s all gone almost too smoothly since.
“You wouldn’t want to see the Epatante that went to Kempton last year if she’s still to be a player in this division. I’m not going up there lined up with excuses, I’m hoping for the best and I’ve always said that her season was all about the Fighting Fifth and the Christmas Hurdle, because after that we’re almost certainly going to bump into Honeysuckle.
“She is something different and if we can get these two races in the bag we’ll have achieved what we set out to for this year. We’re not going to lie down and we could even try two and a half (miles) in the Mares’ Hurdle – but I’m yet to mention it with anyone. Is she going to beat Honeysuckle? The answer is probably no – regardless of what she does at Kempton.”
Shishkin still in the frame for Kempton
Another possible runner at the Ladbrokes Christmas Festival is the hugely exciting Shishkin, who could line up in the Grade Two Ladbrokes Desert Orchid Chase on Monday 27th December. Like stablemate Mister Fisher, though, the talented chaser’s involvement at Kempton Park will hinge on a positive piece of work this (Tuesday 21st Decenber) morning.
He said: “It’s a possibility that he could go to Kempton. He’s going to be working the same as Mister Fisher and we will decide after that. He’s only done one serious piece since I’ve been able to bring him back and he’s fine, but I’ve got to be happy with him in the morning and we’ll decide then whether we enter him or whether we wait for the Clarence House.
“I hope we do declare him, but if we don’t I hope everybody will understand. The horse comes first and he needs to work very well on Tuesday morning for us to be happy.
“Personally I think he ranks at the top of the division, but we’re not going to prove it if we’re only going out 95% fit - there’s no point in doing that. I’m dying to run him and he’s got to get out there and run – he needs at least two good runs before March – and Kempton followed by Ascot could fit.
“He has the potential to emulate Altior and Sprinter Sacre, but he hasn’t done that yet. He’s only out of novice company and now he’s got to do it against the older boys.
“I think the novices are probably the main contenders. Willie’s horse Energumene is one that I would single out in particular as a threat, but there’s a whole host of them. I’m sure Willie was a little bit disappointed with Chacun Pour Soi in the Tingle Creek but it was still a very good race, while Paul (Nicholls) has got a very strong hand himself.”