Henderson considers Bacchanal options
Henderson has both Bacchanal, who has top weight of 11st 12lb, and Marlborough in the Hennessy Cognac Gold Cup at Newbury on November 30.
Their main objective in the first half of the season is the Pertemps King George VI Chase at Kempton on St. Stephen’s Day.
‘‘Bacchanal worked well this morning.
“He’s in very good form and it’s just a case of finding somewhere to start. He’s likely to be King George bound,’’ Henderson said.
‘‘There’s very few races for horses of his class, that’s why they have to stay in the Hennessy and it’s not ideal looking at handicaps with those sort of weights they have to carry but it might be that they have to run in it.’’
Bacchanal has not raced since being the 12th of 13 finishers behind Best Mate in the Tote Cheltenham Gold Cup in March when Marlborough was fourth.
Henderson also reported Marlborough to be in fine shape following his amazing victory in the Peterhouse Group Charlie Hall Chase at Wetherby earlier this month.
‘‘He’s great, really good. He got a couple of nicks and cuts, it was a bruising sort of race.
“He made a mistake and recovered. He and Mick (Fitzgerald) both did well to get away with it and the performance was good.
‘‘We are still looking at the Hennessy as it’s the only obvious race between now and the King George
‘‘He has 11st 6lb but that could go up and in fairness Bacchanal is holding up the weights.’’
Henderson’s smart hurdler Landing Light is also set to return this month in either the Pertemps ‘Fighting Fifth’ Hurdle at Newcastle which he won last year or the Pricewaterhousecoopers Ascot Hurdle over two and a half miles.
‘‘I don’t know where he’ll go yet but shaped last year as though the extra half-mile would help him,’’ added the trainer of the seven-year-old who was fifth to Hors La Loi III in the Smurfit Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham in March.
