Fabulous Flyer a forever favourite

WISDOM, conventional or otherwise, is in plentiful supply at the Cheltenham Festival and conjecture is very much a common currency.

Both had it yesterday morning that 11-year-old Moscow Flyer would not regain his Champion Chase crown from the youthful eight-year-old Azertyuiop, based on the presumption that the younger horse had plenty of room for improvement, while the older animal did not.

But conventional wisdom and conjecture proved to be abject liars as Moscow Flyer scorched home to a typically raucous Irish reception ahead of a very impressive Well Chief and an inexplicably bad Azertyuiop in yesterday's Festival highlight.