Nico de Boinville raised the possibility of the standing start being a contributory factor behind Jonbon’s defeat in the BetMGM Queen Mother Champion Chase.
Having won 17 of his 20 starts, the only thing missing from Jonbon’s CV was a
Festival victory, but all three of those defeats had come at the track.
He had sort of put the theory of not acting at Cheltenham to bed with two victories in the Shloer Chase, but any chance he had of winning the big one evaporated with a jolting mistake at halfway which brought him to a standstill.
It was to his immense credit that he got going again to claim second behind Marine Nationale, although he would have finished third had Quilixios not fallen at the last.
As the starter was not happy to let the field go at their initial attempt, it meant a standing start was required, with the tape being very close to Jonbon’s nose, which De Boinville felt put him immediately on the back foot.
“I’d say it never really went right from the start really,” said De Boinville.
“We were stood up against the tape, the tape pinged back and it went underneath his nose, which just sort of startled him for a second, then you are on the back foot and they’ve gone hard.
“I’d say there was a stride at five out but I’d say he might have just lost his sight slightly. He’s some horse to still finish second.”
Henderson, who famously struggles with his eyesight, said: “You know what I’m like, I haven’t seen a thing. I’ve only watched it live. I honestly haven’t seen the error.
“Nico was saying he got a fright at the start and that put him on the back foot before he started. He missed his kick and we were where we didn’t want to be.
“The fact he was able to run on and still finish second speaks volumes.
“After Constitution Hill yesterday, this is hard but we’ve learned to live with it after all these years.
“I’d say the start contributed to the mistake and you know what it’s like in these top two-mile chases. A lot would have chucked in the towel.
“You know what I can see and that is not a lot, so I’d need to watch it all again.”