The New Lion wins Unibet Hurdle, but Cheltenham feature marred by Sir Gino injury

Dan Skelton’s The New Lion won the Unibet Hurdle at Cheltenham but the race was marred by an injury to Sir Gino.

Billed as a match between potentially the two best two-mile hurdlers in Britain, both were biding their time in the four-runner race when Sir Gino appeared to land awkwardly at the flight at the top of the hill and Nico de Boinville pulled him up.

Harry Skelton was content to take a lead for as long as possible on The New Lion, a winner over two miles and five furlongs at the Festival in March, before he asked him to quicken approaching the last.

Nemean Lion and Brentford Hope proved tough adversaries, before The New Lion (9-4) eventually got on top to win by a length and a half.

Skelton said: “I’m a big fan of this sport and Sir Gino could be the best horse in training and we just didn’t need that. We’re all thinking it and we just hope he is OK, it’s important.

“The team at Seven Barrows have been through hell and back to get him back on track and hopefully he is OK.”

Of his winner he added: “We needed to get a clear round after Newcastle and Harry did exactly what I wanted him to do and held him into the bottom of all the jumps. He was a lot more respectful today and even down to the last Harry is wrestling him getting him into the bottom of them as he’ll need those jumps in a Champion Hurdle.

“The unanswered question with this horse is the speed angle and I thought he showed a lot of speed at Newcastle despite us ending up on the floor. He showed a lot of speed there as well from turning in to the last and then from the last to the line.

“It will be a totally different race in the Champion Hurdle and they’ve gone round there at a crawl and I’m not saying I could have layed up alongside them but there is some who could.”

Harry Skelton said: “I didn’t even know what happened to Sir Gino and the three of us said at the top of the hill ‘where is Nico?’ and you don’t want that to happen. Hopefully they are both OK.

“We just wanted to get a lead and Nico wanted a lead as well and it just shows you, that leading up to the Festival you want these horses coming through these trials well and I’m just delighted he’s got a clear round.

“We hacked round and sprinted and he’s not short of a gear and it just put a few manners on him a bit today. He’s only young, doesn’t have much experience and did what I wanted him to do and it will do his confidence good. Hopefully he will come back now in March.

“I’ve ridden in a Champion Hurdle and haven’t won one, but I would like to.”