Welfare, Weather and Wagering: The Disappointment of Scratching a Star Horse

Imagine, for a moment, that you bought tickets to a Taylor Swift concert, only to learn on arrival at the stadium that Miss Swift would no longer be in attendance due to inclement weather. While the comparison might be a little crude, horse racing fans do experience that feeling from time to time, particularly across the winter jumps season in the UK and Ireland.

A case in point is the scratching of Constitution Hill from the Fighting Fifth Hurdle at Sandown in December. Constitution Hill is rated as the best hurdler in racing by time form, and the unbeaten 6yo is a huge favourite in the Cheltenham betting for the Champion Hurdle 2024. He is, in short, a box office attraction, a reason for making the trip in the freezing cold to a racecourse on a winter’s afternoon.

Henderson criticised for scratching Constitution Hill

Constitution Hill’s trainer, Nicky Henderson, made little apology for pulling the horse from the Fighting Fifth. The weather was not ideal, and, as he said, the horse’s welfare must come before satisfying the fans and punters hoping to see a superstar in action. Henderson has form for this, and he is perhaps the most commonly cited modern British trainer who pulls horses from races at the last moment. Of course, it also helps that Henderson is arguably the best jumps trainer in the UK of the 21^st century, so the spotlight is invariably on his charges more than others.

It’s important to note that we speak of the “horse’s welfare”; the meaning is ambiguous. It refers to both the well-being of the animal, as a horse that is not suited to, for example, soggy ground, is more likely to pick up injury or fall at a hurdle. It also refers to the horse’s welfare as a competitor. It has become more apparent that UK and Irish trainers think ahead to the Cheltenham Festival – the undisputed highlight of the jumps racing season – in the spring.

A horse’s well-being should always be at the forefront

One major UK newspaper took umbrage at the withdrawal of Constitution Hill on welfare grounds, criticising Henderson and listing some of the other high-profile withdrawals down the years, including the now infamous scratching of Altior, another one of Henderson’s superstars, which the media dubbed “Altior-gate”. The criticism was based on the assumption that Henderson uses welfare as a cover. They argued that fans would have been more satisfied had the trainer simply said the ground was not suitable to the horse’s chances of winning the race.

Yet, as we mentioned, there is always a dual sense when talking about welfare in horse racing. The ultimate decision lies with the owners, not the trainer. Yet, the latter is charged with a duty of care, offering advice to the owners on the best way to handle the horse. That includes its well-being. Choosing to hold back a horse until the optimum conditions are present on the racecourse is ultimately beneficial to the animal. Yes, fans can be disappointed at not seeing a superstar in action. But if an experienced trainer thinks it’s best to scratch a horse from the card, then it’s the right one.