Cheltenham Festival: Nicky Henderson sends Jeriko Du Reponet warning

The JP McManus-owned gelding took his record under rules to two from two when winning in style at Newbury on Saturday.

However, despite being impressed by what he has seen so far from the high-class prospect, he will need to see the racecourse again before March, according to the Seven Barrows handler.

“Jeriko was fantastic, I thought he was special,” said Henderson.

“We rode a horse who is a real good galloper for speed and he actually beat speed horses. I thought he was fantastic. He waltzed away from them and he will gallop forever.

“He’ll have to have another run before Cheltenham and if he doesn’t run before then, he won’t run at Cheltenham.”

One option available is Haydock’s Sky Bet Supreme Trial Rossington Main Novices’ Hurdle, which Henderson won with Jonbon two seasons ago, while Kempton’s Dovecote Novices’ Hurdle could be another route to Prestbury Park available to the five-year-old.

Henderson added: “It’s not where I would like to go (Haydock) but there isn’t too much else. Kempton would be very close, so I don’t know – someone put a race on somewhere!”

Henderson is still coming to terms with Shishkin’s dramatic exit from the King George at Kempton on Boxing Day.

The multiple Grade One winner was going strongly in front when he slipped after jumping two out, unshipping Nico de Boinville.

“He’s got a very sore splint and I’m thinking we’re trying to hesitate a reason for doing what he did,” said Henderson.

“He gave himself a right whack on his off-fore, where a splint which was probably already there has become very sore. He’s not lame but very sore.

“If he clonked that in mid-air or whatever, he would have landed going ‘ahhhhhhh’. But you can’t land on one leg and pick the other one up.

“We’ve got the splint itself to settle down and the soreness will come out of it, but if you do touch it, he is very, very sore, the poor old boy.

“It just means I think I know what happened, but what does it matter what happened. He tripped over at the end of the day, why he did it doesn’t even matter.

“I have no idea where he will race next, we will let the dust settle, no one has even thought about it.”

Henderson also had news of Willmount, who lost his unbeaten record in the Challow Hurdle at Newbury.

The trainer said: “He’s fine. I don’t think it was the ground. There’s a few things we might check out before we decide what we do next, but it’s not an easy thing to check out on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day, because the men you want to try to find these things out (are busy), unlike me last night, who was fast asleep.”