Paul Nicholls channels his inner Sir Alex Ferguson as he takes the positives despite Caldwell Potter’s struggles

Paul Nicholls jolted his shoulders, got on the front foot and though Sir Alex Ferguson was nowhere to be seen, you knew he would have approved.

Ferguson, the most famous owner in Nicholls’s yard, became a master at dealing with defeat during his time managing Manchester United, particularly when the circumstances were high-profile. He has often provided counsel to the 14-time champion trainer, in how to deal with the setbacks.

And on a dank day at Cheltenham, there had been a setback. Caldwell Potter, the headline-making horse Ferguson owns in a four-man syndicate, had finished third behind Jango Baie after being sent off 11-10 favourite in a field of five.

Caldwell Potter, for a short period, held the title of most expensive horse sold at a public auction, costing Ferguson and his friends a colossal £634,000 in February. So far, in two runs, he has recouped a mere £12,953 and some will question whether the money was well spent.

When it was put to Nicholls, your mind turned to how Ferguson would bristle when his judgment over a new signing was called into question.

There was no fire and brimstone but there was, clearly, a message that it would be wrong to draw a conclusion on what we had seen.

Paul Nicholls was eager to take the positives despite Caldwell Potter enduring some difficulties

Caldwell Potter (R) finished third behind Jango Baie (L) after being sent off 11-10 favourite in a field of five

‘Ah, that’s totally irrelevant,’ said Nicholls. ‘You take no notice of that. It’s all about the future and he will win lots of nice races, believe me. The great thing about that (run) is he jumped so well. I’m working out whether he is a two-miler or a three-miler.

‘He looked like he was flat out after the last but, again, I’ve got to say I was delighted with his jumping. He goes a good gallop and, on testing ground, you could really utilise his jumping. The winner is a good horse and remember: it wasn’t all about this race.

‘He’s only had five runs in his life, three over hurdles and I didn’t think he jumped them well. He’s had two runs for us but he jumped brilliantly then, dead straight. Harry Cobden (his jockey) was thrilled with him. It’s all about the future now.’ 

Nicholls’ response called to mind when Ferguson would back his own judgement on signings

Nicholls will hope to gain some kind of compensation on Saturday afternoon when his daughter, Olive, partners Il Ridoto — another co-owned by Ferguson — in the December Gold Cup. The gelding won the Paddy Power Gold Cup at Cheltenham last month and is expected to give another bold show.

You do not achieve what Nicholls has by dwelling on losses and the same is true about Nicky Henderson, who was happy to give an upbeat bulletin about Constitution Hill, the season’s most talked about horse.

The 2023 Champion Hurdler schooled at Seven Barrows on Thursday and, provided he continues to thrive, Henderson would be happy to let Constitution Hill attack the Christmas Hurdle at Kempton on Boxing Day, where he would most likely meet Willie Mullins’s Lossiemouth.

‘Everything is going well, all in very good form,’ said Henderson. ‘I can tell you how many days there are to go (until the Christmas Hurdle) and I’ve never seen him look better. He’s got a couple of bits of work to do. I think we have every chance of being there.’