Racing Victoria makes early approach as British star Constitution Hill eyes Melbourne Cup

One of the most popular horses in British racing history switching from jumps racing to flat racing to tackle the Melbourne Cup as a 10-year-old?

It might sound far-fetched but Racing Victoria’s international recruiter Paul Bloodworth is letting himself dream, at least for the time being.

Connections of superstar hurdler Constitution Hill have a trip down under firmly on their radar after the iconic stayer registered a dominant flat win on the synthetic track at Southwell.

Constitution Hill’s Melbourne Cup quote was slashed to $21 with Bet365 after the nine-length romp.

Bloodworth knows there is a lot of water to go under the bridge before the dream becomes a reality.

For one, Constitution Hill may well revert to jumping, a discipline in which he has been heralded a superstar but one in which he has fallen in three of his last four starts.

Another stumbling block could be RV’s stringent veterinary protocols, which have ruled several hype northern hemisphere stayers out of the race since their introduction.

In any case, Bloodworth has made an initial approach to trainer Nicky Henderson, should he wish to plot a path towards the Melbourne Cup.

“He was so impressive on the weekend,” Bloodworth said.

“It was a pleasant surprise to see the comments from the owner Michael Buckley on Nick Luck’s show.

“I knew they had some interest in Melbourne, depending on where he goes with his career, but for him to flag that it (Melbourne Cup) is potentially the plan, it was incredibly exciting.

“I had actually reached out to the IRB, the International Racing Bureau, just to let Nicky know that I’m the contact here (Melbourne) if they want to have a chat about it in due course.

“There is a lot of water to go under the bridge and it appears they’ve got a lot of thinking to do about his future and whether he goes back jumping again.

“Given he is basically Britain’s favourite horse and he’s got an incredible backstory, it would be one of the best stories ever if he made it down for the Melbourne Cup.

“Of course, he is a nine-year-old and he’ll be a 10-year-old by our time in November but his performance was that of a horse that will be competitive if they decide to go flat racing with him now.”

As well as passing the vet protocols, Constitution Hill will need to pass the first ballot clause for the Melbourne Cup.

To do this, the son of Blue Bresil will need to win a Listed race over 2300m or further, run top three in a Group race over 2300m or further or finish top three in the Ebor Handicap.

Bloodworth doesn’t think it will be difficult for Constitution Hill and pointed to the examples set by Irish trainers Willie Mullins and Dermot Weld with their own reformed jumpers.

“Absurde is the latest example of that (mixing jumping and elite flat racing), as a Cheltenham winner that has come down and been competitive in three Melbourne Cups now,” he said.

“Willie has made a habit of it over the years and obviously Dermot Weld with Vintage Crop is the most famous example of it.

“Nicky has actually had a runner in Melbourne before – he bought a horse called Forgotten Voice in 2013 and tried to get him into the Melbourne Cup and he just missed out.

“He ran fifth in the Geelong Cup and fourth in the Queen Elizabeth so I can only assume Nicky’s got an itch that he wants to scratch in Melbourne.”