CONSTITUTION HILL TARGETS KEMPTON'S FLOODLIT STAKES FOR NEXT FLAT START

Constitution Hill is set to return to Kempton for his next outing, with Nicky Henderson naming the Listed Unibet Floodlit Stakes on Wednesday 25 November as the likely target for the former champion hurdler's third run of the autumn on the Flat.

The nine-year-old has been beaten on both starts since stepping up in class, finishing well held in the September Stakes at Kempton before taking fifth behind Stingray in the Group 2 Gran Premio del Jockey Club in Milan last month. Henderson says he looked at overseas alternatives before settling on a return to Sunbury, where the gelding has never been far from his best.

Ground went against him in Italy

Henderson, speaking to Unibet, explained that the Milan trip only went ahead after heavy midweek rain turned what had been quick ground soft. By race day, however, conditions had dried back to good and were quickening, and the trainer believes an easier surface would have made a real difference. Constitution Hill was also further back than connections wanted on a track with a very long home straight.

Despite those setbacks, Henderson insists the horse is thriving in his new career and is putting on condition. He also expects the return of the yard's better jumpers to Seven Barrows to help, after a summer in which he was short of high-class work companions.

"He likes Kempton, he likes the all-weather." – Nicky Henderson, speaking to Unibet

A familiar stage

Kempton has been central to the Constitution Hill story. He won the Christmas Hurdle there three times during a jumping career that brought him the 2023 Champion Hurdle, and he made it two from two on the Flat with a polytrack success under the Sunbury floodlights in March, following an eye-catching debut win at Southwell.

His hurdling days ended after three falls in four starts, and the switch to the Flat has kept one of the sport's most popular horses in the public eye. A Listed contest on the all-weather is a step back in grade from his last two runs, and a return to winning ways in front of what is sure to be a sizeable midweek crowd would be a welcome lift for his many followers.

Final declarations for the Floodlit Stakes are still to come, so his participation remains subject to confirmation nearer the day.