WILLIE Mullins came up short in his bid to upset Constitution Hill in the Champion Hurdle but hopes he may have found a fresh contender to challenge Nicky Henderson’s outstanding talent in Impaire Et Passe, who bolted up by six and a half lengths in the Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle.

Simon Munir and Isaac Souede’s five-year-old is now unbeaten in his trio of starts over hurdles, and it was his superior speed over this two-and-a-half-mile trip that his rivals were unable to live with.