Constitution Hill will miss his intended engagement in the John Porter Stakes at Newbury this weekend.
The eight-time Grade 1 winner has made a seamless transition to the Flat after his national hunt career came to an end, winning both of his starts at Southwell and Kempton.
Saturday's John Porter entry was supposed to be his first step into Group company, however, trainer Nicky Henderson has confirmed that the nine-year-old will not take his chance in the mile-and-a-half contest.
Why is Constitution Hill not running at the weekend?
Earlier this week, Henderson registered his concerns about the ground at Newbury - currently described as good - adding that Constitution Hill would only run if the conditions eased somewhat.
After walking the track with clerk of the course George Hill, the veteran trainer has decided that the ground is too fast for his stable star and he will look elsewhere for a race.
"We're not going to run him. I just can't do it, and there's no point in waiting any longer because the rain is not going to come in before Saturday," Henderson told the Racing Post.
"We wanted to let everyone know because there's obviously a lot of interest, which is lovely and we do appreciate that, but it wasn't a close call, which helps us in a way, and it means I'm not having sleepless nights about it."
Nine are now left in the John Porter, with the betting topped by Karl Burke's Convergent at 5/2.
On paper it appears to be a classy renewal of the race with Pride Of Arras, Al Aasy and Eydon all leading contenders heading into the weekend. Burdett Road, who has also mixed Flat and Jumps throughout his career, returns to domestic action after his recent exploits in the middle east.
Discussing immediate targets for Constitution Hill, Henderson added: ""We'll have a look and see. We're obviously disappointed not to run him, but he's a big, heavy boy. He runs as a Flat racehorse, but he doesn't look anything like one.
"I'll talk to Michael [Buckley] about what happens now. I've only just spoken to him about what we're going to do this weekend, and I haven't looked much further. There are a couple of 0-100 handicaps that he could come into after two runs because he's rated 101."
