Horse Racing
Murphy anticipating smart renewal of September Stakes
Oisin Murphy was the man receiving the adulation after Constitution Hill’s memorable Flat debut at Southwell in February, but on Saturday he will be in opposition to Nicky Henderson’s former hurdling great when partnering Saeed bin Suroor’s Tornado Alert in the William Hill September Stakes at Kempton.
Few will forget that damp evening under the Rolleston floodlights, including the five-time champion jockey, who had the privilege of the best seat in the house aboard the 2023 Champion Hurdle hero.
Murphy will be right at the heart of the action again this weekend, this time aboard Saeed bin Suroor’s German Group One winner Tornado Alert, with his title rival Billy Loughnane deputising on Henderson’s Seven Barrows superstar in a field of seven runners for the Group Three feature.
“It’s a good renewal of the race and there are some high-class horses in there,” Murphy told the Press Association on Thursday morning.
“Tornado Alert had a good comeback run in Germany and hopefully he can step forward from it.
“Gethin’s form when he was a neck second to Ombudsman is very strong, Constitution Hill has a perfect record on the Flat – two from two – and Almeric is in there as well. He has some really good form and was impressive with me last year in the Doonside Cup at Ayr.
“Seven runners, a good field. It will be interesting to see how it plays out.”
Having been given an extended summer break since doubling his Flat tally over this course and distance at the end of March under Ryan Moore, Constitution Hill now faces the acid test of his capabilities on the level, stepping up in grade for a contest which will signpost the rest of his season.
Connections have so far failed to rule out a Melbourne Cup tilt, and a top-three finish this weekend would keep Australian dreams alive.
Owen Burrows’ Gethin was last seen finishing down the field in the Coral-Eclipse, but before that had pushed Ombudsman close in a thrilling Brigadier Gerard Stakes. With a mark of 117, he sets the standard, with Constitution Hill the lowest-rated runner by some way on 101.
John and Thady Gosden’s Warrant Holder is another interesting runner – representing the King and Queen – with Tornado Alert’s stablemate Dubai Future, Andrew Balding’s Almeric and Ralph Beckett’s Pride Of Arras completing the septet.
