Nicky Henderson withdraws THREE Wednesday runners at Cheltenham as mystery continues over his horses’ struggles… as the trainer reveals there is ‘obviously something affecting nearly all our horses’
Nicky Henderson withdrew three runners at Cheltenham on Wednesday due to concerns over the health of his string.
Jonbon, who was tipped for success in the Betway Queen Mother Champion Chas, is the main name that will no longer feature as Henderson continued to express concerns about his horses.
The trainer criticized five of his six horses from the first day of the event and speculated that there is “obviously something affecting almost all of our horses” that he has not yet identified.
He took to X (formerly Twitter) on Wednesday morning to announce the news, as he revealed there will be more non-runners later in the week.
First Street and Kingston Pride were also pulled from events on Wednesday, with Henderson expressing regret over the “difficult decisions” made ahead of the day.
Nicky Henderson withdrew three runners from Cheltenham on Wednesday
“I am afraid we have had to make some very difficult decisions following the very disappointing performance of all but one of our horses yesterday,” the statement began.
“It was apparent to all that there is clearly something going on with almost all of our horses and that is why we have reluctantly decided that Jonbon, First Street and Kingston Pride will not be competing today.
‘It is impossible to give a reason for all the disappointments and none of these three horses have given any cause for concern.’
Fears have now grown that Triumph Hurdle favorite Sir Gino will not be able to run on Friday as concerns grow over Henderson’s string.
Constitution Hill was withdrawn from the event after being diagnosed earlier this month as unwell with phlegm and a ‘significant degree of inflammation’, and Henderson appeared determined to get to the bottom of the issues.
Luccia, meanwhile, was the only Henderson horse to complete a race on day one.
“All of yesterday’s runners were clean after the race and I’m happy to say they are all healthy this morning,” he continued.
‘Unfortunately there will be even more non-runners on Thursday and Friday. I hope everyone will realize that we have to do this in everyone’s interest, especially the horses.
“It’s very disappointing for everyone.”