Nicky Henderson: “I would like to applaud the BHA as we now know exactly where we stand”

OBVIOUSLY we should all be up at Aintree for the Grand National meeting but due to the current circumstances we are all locked down at Seven Barrows but I would like to applaud the BHA for their announcement that jump racing won’t resume until July 1st. I think this is a very good call and the correct decision because at least we all know where we stand. We have all been talking about it amongst ourselves, but from a National Hunt point of view we can all make plans for the future and it makes a lot of sense to wait until we are over the worse of this pandemic. Most of our horses have been kept ticking over and I was holding on to a few in case Punchestown was going to happen but that’s now off so it was important to know that we aren’t going to race and this helps us so we know what to do with all the horses and can start winding them all down and roughing them off. Many of them can now go home and once it warms up a bit, and we get some decent spring weather, a lot of them can be turned out in the fields to get the best of the lush spring grass and then maybe we can crack on with them a little bit earlier than usual and think about starting again in July. We’ve got about 15 to run throughout the summer, including Brain Power who we hope to take back to America, and hopefully there will be a few for Market Rasen’s big meeting as well.

We’re all self isolating and locked on the premises at Seven Barrows and I’m glad to say that all of the staff are fit and healthy, which is the main thing. We did have three lads living in the same house who had to self isolate and keep away from everyone but this is a nice big place to be locked away in so it could certainly be much worse.

We’ve had seventy five percent of our season and have only really missed out on Aintree and Sandown, where it would have been nice to end with a bit of a party, but that’s completely irrelevant in the grand scheme of things and I totally appreciate that flat racing must start as soon as it’s deemed feasible to do so. It really is important for everyone as it’s still very much up in the air but if it has to go on behind closed doors to take the pressure of the emergency services that would clearly be better than having no racing at all and at the moment my only concern is for the flat boys who need to get the show on the road at the most appropriate opportunity.

Virtual Grand National

In the meantime I am very much looking forward to the Virtual Grand National on Saturday and I really hope everybody gets behind it because it’s a great initiative and will hopefully raise a lot of money for the NHS. My three, Ok Corral, Beware The Bear and Valtor are all fit and raring to go, in fact Beware The Bear put in a blistering piece of virtual work on Monday and Valtor was superb over the virtual fences under a virtual Daryl Jacob last Tuesday, so I couldn’t be more happier with the shape they’re in! I think Ok Corral will be mid div but then probably fall and Beware The Bear will be tailed off for the first two circuits but come with a late run to catch Valtor on the line – Nicky Henderson has never won the Grand National so you can guarantee I’ll end up winning the virtual equivalent!

Altior sadly missed this years @CheltenhamRaces Festival, have a look at my plans for our superstar next season. #ad https://t.co/oRR9Dg8eTz

— Nicky Henderson (@sevenbarrows) March 28, 2020