Awesome Altior evokes memories of legend Sacre

A week and a season that was far from ideal for Altior turned around dramatically when he extended his perfect record over obstacles to 14 with a brilliant display in the Betway Champion Chase.

Horses of this ilk shouldn’t come around very often, but the eight-year-old, winner of the Arkle Chase and the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle in his two previous visits to the Festival, is hot on the heels of former stable-companion Sprinter Sacre, twice a winner of this race and widely acknowledged as one of the great two-mile chasers.

After a wind operation allowed just one prep run, turning out lame on Monday morning was another hiccup connections didn’t need, but that didn’t matter to Altior’s legion of supporters, who obliged the layers who wished to take him on at odds against.