Nicky Henderson’s gelding has lost his aura of invincibility and a step up in distance is unlikely to see a return to winning ways
When Shishkin extended his winning streak over jumps to 10 races with a memorable defeat of Energumene in the Clarence House Chase 13 months ago, Nicky Henderson’s gelding seemed poised to dominate the two-mile chase division for several seasons.
Two lacklustre runs later, Shishkin has something to prove as he steps up to two and a half miles for the first time over fences in Saturday’s Grade One Betfair Ascot Chase. It was just about possible to blame the soft ground when he was pulled up in the Champion Chase in March, but he was not travelling like a winner at any stage either there or behind Edwardstone in the Tingle Creek at Sandown in December.
