Like a game of hide-and-seek, trainers on both sides of the Irish Sea are trying to find the right races for their Champion Hurdle contenders, without finding the wrong level of opposition that would bring too hard a race.

Nicky Henderson’s juggling act with his three possibles – Zaynar, Binocular and Punjabi – has left him bemoaning opportunities lost to the weather in recent weeks. Now he has a chance to start with Punjabi,  who features among nine entries for the Grade Two sportingbet.com Champion Hurdle Trial at Haydock Park on Saturday.

The race was reopened yesterday because it only received nine entries at the five-day stage, but there were still no more takers when the second deadline passed.

The reigning Champion Hurdler finished 13½ lengths fourth to Khyber Kim on his reappearance, in the boylesports.com International Hurdle at Cheltenham last month, in his only race so far this season. Henderson said before that race that Punjabi would need the run and is expected to be a lot closer to the finished article. As Henderson said at the time: “He does take a great deal of work. We’ve really done plenty with him, but there’ll be a lot of improvement to come. The Champion Hurdle is run in March, not December.”

Henderson has also entered Zaynar and Afsoun, although it would certainly be a surprise if Zaynar was there only as a substitute should something happen to Punjabi. But Medermit, who was eight lengths ahead of Punjabi in the International, is also entered along with Sublimity, the 2007 Champion Hurdle winner and the sole possible challenger from Ireland.

Celestial Halo appears likely to be making the trip in the opposite direction for the Grade One Toshiba Irish Champion Hurdle at Leopardstown on Sunday, for which there are 12 entries.

Last season’s Champion Hurdle runner-up is on something of a recovery mission, having finished two-and-a-quarter lengths second in the International when the odds-on favourite. However, this will not be an easy prize as there is a strong home defence led by the Charles Byrnes-trained Solwhit, who will be attempting a third Grade One victory of the season.

One horse who is entered for neither race but whose presence has cast its own shadow over the ante-post markets for the Smurfit Kappa Champion Hurdle is Dunguib.

There have been rumours that this rising novice, who won the Bumper at the Cheltenham Festival last season, could be switched from the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle in favour of the main event this March.

His trainer Philip Fenton has insisted that the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle remains the objective for Dunguib, who will be working tomorrow, and that the entry for the Champion Hurdle is purely speculative.

However, the inconclusive nature of many of the recent trial races has given the Champion Hurdle the appearance of a particularly open contest.

Events this weekend may only increase the strength of that speculation. 

Paul Wheeler