Henderson joins 2,000 club

NICKY Henderson finally reached his 2,000th winner as a jumps trainer after Punchestowns rediscovered his battling qualities in the 40% Better Off On Betfair SP Graduation Chase at Kempton yesterday.

Henderson will need to more than double his total to match the 4,182 recorded by Martin Pipe, but he remains the most successful current licence-holder at the Cheltenham Festival and was delighted to achieve the notable mark after a few near-misses this week.

The Cheltenham Gold Cup is one of the very few major prizes to have eluded Henderson in a career which started in 1978, yet he was cagey as to whether Punchestowns would be taking his chance in the race after what was not exactly an impressive display.