Nicky Henderson has confirmed that Sir Gino will stick to hurdles for his first run of the season and take up what was effectively Constitution Hill's spot in the Fighting Fifth Hurdle at Newcastle on Saturday.
After stating that Constitution Hill would face a spell on the sidelines due to a bruised pastern and will definitely miss the BetMGM-backed contest in the north east next weekend at Ascot on Saturday, Henderson and team have opted not to go chasing just yet with the four-year-old Sir Gino.
The Grade 1 Boodles Anniversary 4-Y-O Juvenile Hurdle hero will instead stick to the smaller obstacles for the time being and look to give the Seven Barrows yard a ninth victory in the Fighting Fifth, which was won by Constitution Hill on his comeback in 2022 before winning the Unibet Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham later that season.
Sky Bet cut the unbeaten Sir Gino into even-money favourite for the race, just ahead of the Willie Mullins-trained Mystical Power who has reportedly been on target for Newcastle for several weeks.
Henderson told the Racing Post on Sunday: "The plan is for Sir Gino to go to Newcastle on Saturday. We were due to work him this morning, but we couldn't do that in the wind – it wouldn't be possible.
"We'll do a bit tomorrow, but he's in very good form. He's already been out for his racecourse gallop, so he doesn't need a mad workout.
"We're all very happy and it's the way we're going to go."
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