Honeysuckle v It’s the big showdown

Lee Mottershead gathers experts opinions about the clash all racing fans yearn to see come March

THIS new season promises an abundance of riches, yet the thing most of us yearn to see more than anything is him against her, or her against him, depending on whether you favour Constitution Hill (him) or Honeysuckle (her).

If we’re being absolutely honest, and on the opening pages of The Big Jump Off there is room for nothing less, the Champion Hurdle has not been going through a golden era. Some marvellous horses have won the fabled race but there have not been enough marvellous horses running in it.

However, without wishing to tempt fate, we appear to be on the cusp of something special.

From the moment Honeysuckle became the first mare ever to win a second Champion Hurdle under Rachael Blackmore, and even as the winner’s enclosure was transformed into a place of wonderfully loud equine worship, jumps fans have been tantalised by the prospect of Ireland’s favourite thoroughbred meeting the stunning athlete who had confirmed his top-of-the-bill status less than two hours earlier.

As a result of that magnificent display in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle, Constitution Hill is clear antepost favourite to claim what Honeysuckle’s connections and admirers hope will become her third Unibet Champion Hurdle. She has netted all 16 of her starts under rules for trainer Henry de Bromhead. He has landed all three of his outings for Nicky Henderson, that trio of successes under Nico de Boinville being notched by a cumulative total of 48 lengths, of which 22 lengths made up the margin between himself and Jonbon, the stablemate who chased him home in the Supreme.

Now for some more numbers.

With neither horse having yet reappeared, the five-yearold Constitution Hill has an official rating of 170 and a peak Racing Post Rating of 172. Honeysuckle has a mark of

165, which mirrors the eightyear-old’s personal best RPR. Another important figure is seven, for that is how many pounds she would receive as sex allowance if they clashed in March. Right now, the young buck – whose Cheltenham winning time was not only a stonking course record but also 5.78 seconds faster than Honeysuckle’s later the same day – is generally 6-4 Champion Hurdle favourite, with the older girl widely on offer at 7-2.

The possibility of a head to head before Cheltenham is slim. Honeysuckle will embark on her final campaign in the usual spot, namely Fairyhouse’s Hatton’s Grace Hurdle, before taking in the Irish Champion Hurdle en route to the Cotswolds. Constitution Hill, who when not galloping is particularly fond of sleeping, may have three runs before the festival. It is almost certain none will be in Ireland. For now, we can only wish, hope and wonder. If you happen to be connected with either horse, you will probably do a lot of worrying as well.

I am one of those wishing, hoping and wondering. In time, I’ll no doubt worry, too. The writer penning these words is a man on a mission, the mission being to get a better impression of what we can expect on March 14. I am also a colleague of Racing Post betting editor Keith Melrose, who knows a smart horse when he sees one.

“It seems strange to say, because I think he could beat Honeysuckle by daylight on what we saw in the Supreme, but the questions are all over Constitution Hill,” argues Melrose.

“His form is solid, and the clock backs up the visual impression, but can he produce something like that again? Will he last a whole season on the tightrope of a Henderson-led superstar campaign? Will he cope with being dictated to? Next year’s

Champion Hurdle is unlikely to be run like March’s Supreme.”

Moving on while cannily swerving his own questions, Melrose adds: “I’ve tended to be down on Honeysuckle, because my view starts with ratings and she does not impress on those, but there’s a lot to be said for a horse who keeps winning. She’s tremendously tough and straightforward. There’s a lot to be said for the 7lb mares’ allowance, too, which to my mind is far too generous in Grade 1 jumps races.

“Purely on what we saw at Cheltenham in March, there would be a stone between Honeysuckle and Constitution Hill in favour of the challenger, but that tells nothing like the whole story with almost six months to go before they’d meet.”

Now for some more astute advice, this time from

Henrietta Knight, a Cheltenham icon herself thanks to the mighty Best Mate.

“I know quite a number of people at Seven Barrows don’t believe Constitution Hill can be beaten anywhere this season,” reveals Knight. “I suspect he will be as good as ever, but you never quite know until they get back on the track. Some horses do change when they return from a summer’s break. Another consideration is that with mares you never know at what point they have had enough. They tell you. Once they lose their form, you can’t get it back.

“So far Constitution Hill has been flawless. He hasn’t put a foot wrong. He has such a relaxed way of racing and does everything at ease. What’s extraordinary is he can switch off but when Nico presses the button he becomes a different horse.”

A conclusion beckons.

“He is at the beginning of his career, whereas Honeysuckle is coming to the end of hers,” points out Knight. “The mare has been fantastic all the way through and has never let anybody down but I think Constitution Hill is probably the better horse. I would favour him at the moment, so I think the bookmakers are right.”

Michael Tabor used to be a bookmaker and now owns BetVictor, so we can still call him a representative of that ancient profession. The 2023

Champion Hurdle will also mark the 30th anniversary of Tabor’s Royal Derbi finishing second behind Granville Again.

“I’m obviously excited about it,” says Tabor, who could be excused if even more excited about Little Big Bear.

“What an incredible attraction it would be for the racing public if Honeysuckle and Constitution Hill could meet. It would be something very special. If both horses are in the right condition to run, it will be a race to savour.”

How would you price it, though, Michael?

“It’s evens each of two!” he says before laughing heartily, another journalistic inquiry batted away in style.

Will Tabor’s principal trainer, Aidan O’Brien, be more dogmatic in his assessment?

“Oh, absolutely, I would look forward to a race between those two,” says the genius who masterminded Istabraq’s three Champion Hurdles. “Honeysuckle is so special and what Henry and Rachael have done with her is incredible. Nicky’s horse is amazing as well.”

In for a penny, in for a pound – or in O’Brien’s case, a cent or a euro – I ask where he would put his money if offered the funds for a small wager?

“Oh God, I don’t know,” he admits. “It will be tough but she has already done it, hasn’t she?”

She has, indeed, and in the most magnificent fashion. Racing manager Peter Molony, who bought Honeysuckle for his client Kenny Alexander, believes the triple Irish Champion Hurdle heroine might even be better than we realise.

“Rachael says she always finds a way to win,” reports Molony. “She can quicken off a fast pace and she can quicken off a slow pace. She can come from behind but she can do it from the front. She can be ridden any way and is incredibly versatile.

“Nicky’s horse was exceptional in the Supreme, and his winning time made what he did look even more impressive, but on official ratings Honeysuckle would beat him with the 7lb allowance. There’s no doubt he’ll improve but I do think a rating of 165 is a bit derisory for Honeysuckle. She only ever does just enough in her races. We all have a sneaking suspicion that if she was put under pressure there would be a bit more there. Personally, I would have her rated between 168 and 170 – but obviously I’m biased.”

ALAN KING, another former Champion Hurdle-winning trainer, is not biased, except in the sense he is famously great mates with Henderson.

“I don’t think I could be taking sides but it’s going to be one hell of a thing to look forward to,” says King. “That sort of clash is what racing is all about.

“I was hugely impressed with Constitution Hill at Cheltenham. I was also hugely impressed with him at Sandown. I don’t run many horses at Sandown because the ground there in the winter is pretty brutal, but he went through it like a knife through butter in the Tolworth. Then at Cheltenham he blew good horses apart.

“That said, he still has to come up again a bit to beat her and you do have to recognise how good she is. That’s what makes the idea of them meeting so wonderful.”

How will Henderson cope with the pressure of having yet another megastar in his midst?

“Oh, Nicky loves it really,” says King. “He wants good horses and has proved how good he is time and time again. There will be issues and little wobbles but there is no better man at getting them there in March. I just wish I had something to take them both on!”

The time has come to consult the two owners, starting with Michael Buckley. How much does he think about a showdown between the hurdling pin-ups of Britain and Ireland?

“I think about it lots,” he admits. “It’s actually a privilege for me that people are so excited about Constitution Hill and looking forward to seeing him race against Honeysuckle. I would love to see how it pans out, but Willie Mullins has two lovely young horses in Vauban and State Man, so it’s likely not to be a two-horse race, anyway.”

The reality, though, is his horse heads the market.

“I have asked one or two people if it’s possible for a horse to do something absolutely extraordinary and then turn out to be very ordinary the following season,” says Buckley.

“What happened in March was almost unbelievable. Winning is one thing but the way he won was astonishing. You would also imagine he will have made some physical improvement, so he should be stronger, although I doubt he could be quicker. That doesn’t really seem conceivable.

“I wouldn’t know anyone who has much experience in jumping who could say in the autumn they were confident of winning a Champion Hurdle. That said, there’s no doubt he has a good shot at winning if he gets to Cheltenham in last season’s festival form.”

Unlike Buckley, Honeysuckle’s owner did not spend the summer contemplating what might occur in March.

“I’ll be honest, I’ve been playing golf in Spain,” says Alexander. “I only start to think and dream about Cheltenham towards the end of February. The reason why is half the battle is getting the horses there. That makes me sound almost as boring as Gareth Southgate.”

Alexander – the former overall boss of Ladbrokes and Coral – is most certainly not boring. Ask him about the ante-post odds and you will receive confirmation of that.

“The current prices are a bit silly,” he says, although he actually thinks they are much sillier than silly.

“I did think ‘wow’ when I saw the Supreme but the Champion Hurdle was a much deeper race. Bookmakers have overreacted to what Constitution Hill did. I’ll tell you this, if those prices are there on the day, I’ll definitely be getting stuck in. If Honeysuckle is close to the form she has been the last few years, I don’t really care what form Constitution Hill is in.

I’m a believer.”

He is not enough of a believer to play now.

“No,” he says. “One, because you could probably get only about £50 on. Two, I wouldn’t bet on any Cheltenham race this far out.”

He will eventually want to back her, though, just as he always has in the past.

“The prize-money in her races is pretty good, so I don’t need to bet, but I think I’ve bet her every single time she has run,” he says. “I love betting and, as she’s the best horse

I’ve got and the best I’ll ever have, I like to back her when she runs.

“Honeysuckle is very special to me, as are the trainer, jockey and the whole team looking after her. Hopefully we’ll get there in March and give everybody a spectacle to remember. I also hope she is somewhere close to 7-2 and

I’ll get stuck in. If Michael Buckley wants to back Constitution Hill at 6-4, he can have as much on as he wants with me!”

To be fair, Buckley has expressed no desire to back his horse at 6-4.

“Michael Tabor is definitely smarter than I am, so I’d say he’s probably right in not wanting to split them,” adds Alexander. “Honeysuckle has done it so many times now, but one horse is younger than the other, and he is probably improving, whereas we probably can’t improve much more. Joint-favourites sounds about right to me.”

For the closing words, it’s back to Buckley and one last question – how would he sell the 2023 Champion Hurdle?

“How would I sell it?” he replies. “I know how you’ll sell it. If Honeysuckle and Constitution Hill have both got there unbeaten, plus Vauban, State Man and a few others, you’ll say it’s going to be the race of the festival.”

The race of the festival? If we get the clash we’re all hoping for, it might just be the race of the decade.

‘The mare has been fantastic but I think Constitution Hill is probably the better horse’ Henrietta Knight

‘Nicky’s horse is amazing but Honeysuckle is so special and she has already done it, hasn’t she? Aidan O’Brien

‘I was hugely impressed by Constitution Hill, but he still has to come up again a bit to beat her’ Alan King

‘I think about it lots. If they have both got there unbeaten it’s going to be the race of the festival’ Michael Buckley