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Nicky Henderson has confirmed last year’s Champion Hurdle hero Constitution Hill has returned home to Seven Barrows, but he will not take on State Man at the Punchestown Festival.
The Nicky Henderson-trained star hurdler was admitted to a veterinary hospital on Wednesday to monitor suspected colic, but Constitution Hill returned back to his Seven Barrows base on Monday having avoided surgery.
Unbeaten in eight starts under Rules, Henderson had earmarked a trip to Punchestown to take on State Man earlier in the month but as expected, the Seven Barrows handler confirmed Constitution Hill would miss the remainder of the season in a positive update revealed on X on Monday.
Henderson said: "Constitution Hill returned to Seven Barrows this morning and it is wonderful to have him home after what he has endured.
"He resumed normal feed yesterday with no further ill effects and had a nice pick of grass in the welcome sunshine. Hopefully, this is all behind him now, but I am afraid it is easy to see he had a difficult week, and the reality is he is going to take some time to recover and put some weight back on again. Therefore, our much-anticipated match with State Man will have to wait until next season.
"As long as he is ok that is all that matters but it has been a horrible few months since his great performance in the Christmas Hurdle. It is time for him to have a summer holiday now look forward to his return, hopefully in the Fighting Fifth."
Constitution Hill's sole performance on the racetrack this season came when a runaway winner of the Christmas Hurdle at Kempton in December, with Henderson's star also forced to miss his engagement on Cheltenham Trials Day due to an unsatisfactory scope.
Further complications would unfold for the reigning Champion Hurdle contender, who was subsequently ruled out of the Champion Hurdle following a below-par racecourse gallop at Kempton led to showing unsatisfactory blood test results.
Constitution Hill is the 5/2 market leader with Paddy Power to regain his Champion Hurdle crown at Prestbury Park next March, with defending champion State Man a 7/2 chance alongside stablemate Lossiemouth for the opening day feature.