Following the news that Barry Geraghty, retained rider for JP McManus, would miss the Cheltenham Festival after suffering a collapsed lung and six broken ribs following a fall from Charli Parcs last Saturday at Kempton Park, trainer Alan King is keen to select a jockey to ride Champion Hurdle hope Yanworth.
General 3/1 favourite for the Grade One two-mile Championship race after sustained support, Geraghty had the difficult decision of choosing between Buveur D’Air, trained by Nicky Henderson – who he rode to success in the Contenders Hurdle at Sandown last month – and King’s charge, who he partnered to victory in the Kingwell Hurdle at Wincanton.
With Geraghty now missing the Festival, plans over who will ride McManus’ duo are undecided but Barbury Castle handler King is keen to appoint a jockey for his gelding by the weekend.
Yanworth battled to a gutsy success in the Kingwell, with the seven-year-old son of Norse Dancer scoring by a length, having looked in trouble turning for home. King’s gelding didn’t seem to enjoy the sharp track at Wincanton but should be seen to greater effect at Cheltenham. He finished second at last year’s Cheltenham Festival in the Neptune Investment Management Hurdle.
Speaking about the jockey situation, King said:
I don’t know who is going to ride him and we need to speak at the weekend, as we do need to find out. Obviously I would like them to come and have a sit on him. No one has ridden him over a hurdle bar Barry Geraghty, so whoever rides him we want to come and school him and possibly ride a bit of work.
The good thing is he has come out of Wincanton very well. We gave him a thorough check-over after Wincanton. The vet, physio and Dan Horsford, who rides him every day, are all delighted with him.
He didn’t have a great preparation for that (Wincanton) and I knew it probably wouldn’t be his track, but I just felt we needed to get a bit more match practice in him and fortunately he has come out of that very well. I don’t think the cheekpieces did him any harm. It was just to make him a bit more slicker through the air.
He is a horse that is totally genuine, but he does like to have a look around. He is a bit slow over a hurdle when he gets in tight and I did think at Wincanton he was much sharper. If anything, he does jump a hurdle like a fence.
This is a more suitable test for him. Wincanton was Plan B as we were going to go to Sandown, but we had that hold up and I couldn’t do that. It was Wincanton or nowhere. I think he has won despite the track. He took a right blow going to the second last but his class got him through and he passed the line with his ears pricked.
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