Henderson pleased with Constitution Hill after he completes first major piece of work ahead of Champion Hurdle defence

Nicky Henderson says he’s pleased with Constitution Hill’s progress after he completed his first major piece of work in preparation for next month’s Champion Hurdle defence.

The unbeaten seven-year-old hasn’t run since winning the Christmas Hurdle by nine-and-a-half-lengths on Boxing Day after missing the rearranged Fighting Fifth due to ground concerns and the Unibet International Hurdle following an unsatisfactory scope.

However Henderson is unconcerned by the Blue Bresil gelding’s supposed lack of match fitness and points out that the time between runs will be exactly the same as last year, when Constitution Hill finished nine lengths clear of the admittedly improving State Man.

Constitution Hill completed a piece of work over the weekend as he gears up for his first competitive outing in three months.

And the legendary Lambourn handler is confident that preparations are going well ahead of Constitution Hill’s bid for successive Champion Hurdle titles in less than a month’s time.

“He’s doing very well,” he said.

“His build-up started last weekend. He’s been ticking over since he had a dirty scope before the Unibet but his first major piece of work was on Saturday.

“We’ve got four weeks to go and – touch wood – everything’s on schedule and it’s all going according to plan.”