While the traditional centrepiece at Christmas is the King George VI Chase, a fantastic race in its own right this year, the return of Constitution Hill in the Christmas Hurdle grabbed the attention of racing fans.
A much talked about horse, a horse that has divided opinions, not for his talent, but for the way he’s been campaigned by trainer Nicky Henderson. Not seen since winning the Christmas Hurdle last year at Kempton, he missed the Champion Hurdle and also missed this year’s Fighting Fifth Hurdle, his intended reappearance.
Built as the race of the festive period that would deliver us vital Champion Hurdle betting clues, the crowd at Kempton were given a magnificent performance to savour from Henderson’s equine star.
Constitution Hill Dazzles on Boxing Day
I think racing is lacking a star or two over jumps at the moment. There’s no real standout huge superstar in any division, but the Champion Hurdle may well have its star back.
In terms of a run after a year off, I’m not sure Constitution Hill could have done much more than what he did on Boxing Day. A two and a half length winner, doing most of it on the bridle, beating Lossiemouth, who is a Grade One winner, and got 7lb due to being a mare.
Constitution Hill does the talking😎 and wins the Christmas 🎄 Hurdle at Kempton https://t.co/DbwI4kvrpU
— Racing Factors (@RacingFactors) December 26, 2024
This wasn’t the usual sub-standard Christmas Hurdle, where we’ve seen Constitution Hill win on the bridle in the past. Tihis was some of the best taking him on, and him still being able to do most of it on the bridle just pushed at the end to wrap up the success.
Talk of whether the horse could or couldn’t return to his best has been a hot topic in the build-up to Christmas. But as we were reminded on many occasions by connections, the horse had not been injured, just ill. So there was no physical reason why he wouldn’t be able to do the same, and on the track at Kempton, he went and proved it.
Constitution Hill Now Odds On for 2025 Champion Hurdle
As you would expect, the bookmakers have reacted to the win with changes in the Champion Hurdle betting market.
Constitution Hill is not just the favourite now but also the odds-on favourite, sitting clear at the top of the market.
A best price of 4/5 but as low as 1/2 in places, it’s fair to say the market has spoken. When you look through the market, especially given how easily he brushed aside Lossiemouth, there’s only one real danger, and that’s State Man, who won the race in the absence of Constitution Hill back in March.
He runs over the weekend in Ireland but would need a monster performance to really shake up the market.
Assuming no further issues crop up, it’s likely that Constitution Hill will turn up at Cheltenham as the odds-on favourite for the Champion Hurdle. And if he wins, I think we can comfortably say that racing has its biggest star attraction back.
