Kauto can star in Champion

KAUTO STAR, the youngest horse in the contest, can land the Queen Mother Champion Chase at Cheltenham this afternoon.

If there is a flying machine in the race then Paul Nicholls' six-year-old is very much the most likely possibility. Lightly raced, he carries maximum stable confidence and comes here fresh, having been rested since early December.

Kauto Star won the Tingle Creek at Sandown that day, putting up a tremendous performance in dreadful conditions. He had the look of a winner from a long way out and, considering he was racing on an unsuitable surface, did really well to beat the two years older and vastly more experienced Ashley Brook by a length and a half.