Balthazar King aiming for cross-country glory at Cheltenham Festival
Popular chaser Balthazar King, who was injured falling in this year’s Grand National, is “full of himself” and back in work.
The 11-year-old fell at the Canal Turn and was then run into by another horse as he tried to get up during the race in April, resulting in several broken ribs.
The horse has since made a remarkable recovery, with connections expecting him to be back for the Cheltenham Festival next year.
Balthazar King has been out in the field at his owner’s home in Hampshire, but has recently been brought back into work.
“It’s great news,” his jockey Richard Johnson told H&H. “He seems to be in good form and ready to go again.
“He’s all good now, he’s being ridden and he’s been hunting a couple of times.”
Richard added that the plan is now for the gelding to return to trainer Philip Hobbs’ Somerset yard over Christmas.
Never miss out on the latest happenings in the equestrian world
“The aim is for the cross-country race at the Festival,” said Richard. “It’s good news that it is now a conditions race [run off level weights], not a handicap, so he won’t have to carry top weight around.”
Balthazar King has won the race the past two years.
“He’s a very tough horse and has a great attitude,” added Richard. “He enjoys racing and his work and his owners say he’s full of himself at the moment. There’s no reason for him not to come back, the vets have been very thorough.”
Following the fall at Aintree, Balthazar King was treated on the course for almost an hour before being taken to the University of Liverpool’s equine hospital in Leahurst.
Balthazar King, who finished second in the 2014 Grand National, was sent off at 17-2 in the 2015 running.
The 11-year-old had been saved for the race, bypassing the Cheltenham Festival, with connections hopeful for a good run.
“He’s always been very bold and brave at jumping, maybe he was a little too bold,” said Richard. “It was a nasty fall but then Ballycasey [ridden by Ruby Walsh] bowled into him too, so it’s hard to know what caused the injury.”
Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now
A graduate of Exeter University, Amy joined our news team from Redpin Publishing in 2008 as news writer. She was promoted to deputy news editor in May 2013 and became news editor in April 2015. She left Horse & Hound in March 2016 to take up an editorial position in Dubai.