Nicky Henderson hopes Barry Geraghty can recover in time for the Cheltenham Festival
NICKY HENDERSON has his fingers firmly crossed Barry Geraghty makes it back from injury in time to ride at the Cheltenham Festival.
The rider was taken to hospital for further examination following a spill from the Henderson-trained odds-on favourite Charli Parcs at Kempton on Saturday, and was subsequently found to have a partially collapsed lung and a cracked rib.
Henderson said: "He sent me a text last night and said he would be fine for Cheltenham. He sounded positive on Cheltenham. JP (McManus) was going to see him this morning and let me know how he is.
"I'm not sure he will have felt quite so fine this morning. He is going to be in hospital for a day or two.
"It is a fortnight on Tuesday before Cheltenham starts and we need him back.
"I know what these boys are like - if they can get there, they will."
Geraghty has a host of big rides to look forward to at the Festival, and could opt to ride ante-post favourite Buveur D'Air for Henderson and McManus in the Champion Hurdle on the opening afternoon, March 14.
Henderson also had news of Charli Parcs, who went into the Adonis Juvenile Hurdle as a leading contender for the Supreme Novices' Hurdle and Triumph Hurdle at the Festival, but had been under pressure before seemingly coming back into it, only to fall two out.
He said: "He is fine. He won't go to Newbury on Friday, we do these things (make entries) if they get loose at the start.
"To be honest, I need to talk to Barry. It didn't look like things were going very clever, but Noel (Fehily) said first time he rode him at Kempton he was a bit the same. As soon as he saw daylight off he went when he came off that bend.
"He picked up again having been five or six lengths down and came into the second-last like a bullet.
"We will talk to JP and discuss plans but it's (Cheltenham) is still very possible."
