Marie's Rock bids for Relkeel Hurdle

Nicky Henderson reports dual Grade One winner Marie’s Rock to be in ‘great form’ ahead of her bid to provide him with a record-equalling fourth success in the careers@dornangroup.com Relkeel Hurdle at Cheltenham on New Year’s Day, writes The Jockey Club's Graham Clark.

The daughter of Milan, who landed the Close Brothers Mares’ Hurdle at The Cheltenham Festival last season, will return to the scene of her finest moment in the Grade Two contest, which Henderson has previously claimed with Oscar Whisky (2011, 2012) and Zaynar (2009).

Marie’s Rock has not been sighted since claiming Grade One honours at Punchestown in April, however Henderson believes the two and a half mile prize represents the perfect opportunity for the seven year old to get her season up and running.

Henderson said: “We’ve waited all season with her, but to be fair this is the only two and a half mile race I can find for her as that is her trip. There just has been nowhere to go with her.

“She really has been in great form and has just come to herself. She has done plenty at home as she has been in training all the way through.

“She has to start somewhere and two and a half miles around Cheltenham is the ideal track and trip to get her going over.”

After winning her first three starts Marie’s Rock met with a setback in the run up to the 2020 Cheltenham Festival, before failing to fire in two outings in her second season in training.

Having spent a period in the doldrums the Middleham Park Racing-owned mare bounced back to her brilliant best last term much to the delight of Henderson, who hopes she can continue build on those performances this campaign.

Henderson said: “Her first season was very good and we thought she was a superstar, but she just went wrong before the mares' novices' hurdle at the Festival then the next season was a disaster and we just lost her.

“Last season she took a couple of starts to get going before winning at Kempton Park on Boxing Day then she was unlucky back there in the Lanzarote Hurdle.

“She then just went from strength to strength winning back-to-back Grade Ones in the Mares’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival before beating Epatante over in Punchestown.

“Hopefully she can give us a few more good days this season.”

Henderson will also be represented by First Street, who will step back up in trip having made a winning return over an extended two miles in the Coral Bet Bundles Intermediate Handicap Hurdle, better known as the Gerry Feilden Hurdle, at Newbury in November.

Henderson said: “First Street could have run in the Christmas Hurdle but I don’t think that would have been a good idea so we have decided to go back up in trip with him.

“We have tried him over similar trips before and he is a very good horse. It was a very good performance in the Gerry Feilden, so he is entitled to have a crack at this.

“Whether he will stay two and a half I don’t know. He might just be a two-miler at the end of the day but if he gets the trip it will be great.”