The Henry VIII Novices Chase is a Grade 1 run over 2 miles as part of Sandown’s Tingle Creek meeting in early December.
It is seen as an important trial for the Arkle Challenge Trophy Chase at the Cheltenham Festival. Contraband in 2004/5 was the last horse to double up.The 2011 winner Al Ferof had won the 2011 Supreme Novices Chase at Cheltenham but was outclassed by Sprinter Sacre in the 2012 Arkle.
Other winners have gone on to Grade 1 success but not in the Arkle. These include Somersby, Direct Route, Fondmort, Impek, and Thisthatandtother.
The 2012 Henry VIII Chase took place on 8 December 2012. Captain Conan landed the honours for trainer Nicky Henderson and jockey Barry Geraghty.
Henry VIII Novice Chase 2012 Result
| Pos | Dist | Horse | Trainer | Age | WT | Jockey | SP |
| 1st | 2 Captain Conan (FR) | N J Henderson | 5 | 11-2 | B J Geraghty | 4/7f | |
| Made all, quickened clear after 2 out, stayed on strongly opened 1/2 £400-£750 £500-£1000 | |||||||
| 2nd | 3½ | 5 Hinterland (FR) | P F Nicholls | 4 | 10-10 | R Walsh | 5/2 |
| Held up in touch, headway approaching 3 out, chased winner before next, kept on under pressure opened 10/3 | |||||||
| 3rd | 4½ | 4 Third Intention (IRE) | C L Tizzard | 5 | 11-2 t | J Tizzard | 17/2 |
| Chased leaders, outpaced 3 out, stayed on to go 3rd after last, never able to challenge opened 10/1 £3600-£400 | |||||||
| 4th | ½ | 1 Act Of Kalanisi (IRE) | Dr R D P Newland | 6 | 11-2 t | R Johnson | 16/1 |
| Tracked leaders, driven to challenge 3 out, soon one pace, lost 3rd closing stages opened 14/1 | |||||||
| 5th | 57 | 3 Escort’men (FR) | A Middleton | 6 | 11-2 h | D Crosse | 66/1 |
| Held up in rear, lost touch after 4 out, tailed off opened 50/1 |
Henry VIII Novices Chase Stats
- Paul Nicholls and the retired Henrietta Knight have been the trainers to follow with 3 wins each in the last decade
- No winner priced bigger than 7-2 in the last decade
- 9 of the last 10 winners aged between 4 and 6
Henry VIII Novices Chase Winners
| Date | Winner | Jockey | Trainer | Age | Weight | OR | Odds |
| 2011 | Al Ferof (FR) | Walsh, R | Nicholls, P F | 6 | 11-2 | 0 | 4-11 |
| 2009 | Somersby (IRE) | McCoy, A P | Knight, Miss H C | 5 | 11-2 | 0 | 7-2 |
| 2008 | Araldur (FR) | Thornton, Robert | King, A | 4 | 11-2 | 137 | 11-4 |
| 2007 | Marodima (FR) | Thomas, Sam | Nicholls, P F | 4 | 11-2 | 0 | 9-4 |
| 2006 | Fair Along (GER) | Johnson, Richard | Hobbs, P J | 4 | 10-13 | 0 | 2-1 |
| 2005 | Racing Demon (IRE) | Murphy, Timmy | Knight, Miss H C | 5 | 11-10 | 0 | 6-4 |
| 2004 | Contraband | Murphy, Timmy | Pipe, M C | 6 | 11-4 | 0 | 100-30 |
| 2003 | Thisthatandtother (IRE) | Walsh, R | Nicholls, P F | 7 | 11-10 | 0 | 4-7 |
| 2002 | Impek (FR) | Culloty, J | Knight, Miss H C | 6 | 11-2 | 0 | 5-4 |
