El Fabiolo looked the best of the big guns in this day-two feature and nothing which has happened so far at the meeting has shaken that view.
In fact, the worrying run of the Nicky Henderson string, which has seriously undermined confidence in the chance of Jonbon, has served to only firm up the view that El Fabiolo is the one to be on.
Paul Townend’s mount can make the odd jumping error but he is a powerfully built, robust horse and those mistakes often hardly knock him out of his stride.
The Queen Mother Champion Chase had surprisingly eluded trainer Willie Mullins until two years ago, when Energumene enjoyed the first of his two victories. He has been sidelined by injury but his stable-mate is much more than an able super sub.
Even if Energumene had been in the race, the likelihood is that El Fabiolo would have been favourite.
El Fabiolo (above) takes on Jonbon and Edwardstone in the Queen Mother Champion Chase
Edwardstone got back on the winning trail at Newbury, where he adopted front-running tactics in the Game Spirit Chase. The run looked great but the race looked to fall apart. This is a different test all together.
Jonbon has talent but he is an edgy horse. He cannot afford the jumping errors he made last time.
Captain Guinness, last year’s runner-up, has a good Festival record. He was also third to Shishkin in the 2021 Arkle Novices’ Chase and has a decent chance of hitting the frame.
1…………………EL FABIOLO 4/9
2…………..EDWARDSTONE 13/2
3…….CAPTAIN GUINNESS 9/1
Odds supplied by Paddy Power
Lizzie Kelly (Festival-winning jockey)
EL FABIOLO returns to the scene of last season’s Arkle Novices’ Chase victory over old rival Jonbon. He has so much class and quality that I’m going to stick with him.
Jonbon had been having a great season until a dreadful round of jumping in the Clarence House chase in January, while Edwardstone jumped himself back into the picture with a great performance when making all in Newbury’s Game Spirit Chase.
1…………………………EL FABIOLO 4/9
2…………………..EDWARDSTONE 13/2
3……………………………..JONBON 5/1
Odds supplied by Paddy Power
Peter Scudamore (eight-time champion jockey)
When Jonbon beat EL FABIOLO in a novice hurdle at Aintree in 2022, I looked at the physique of the two horses and felt it was El Fabiolo who might make the better chaser — and so it has proved so far. The Nicky Henderson-trained Jonbon has been a bit hit and miss but El Fabiolo has never been beaten since, racking up seven wins. Edwardstone was back to form with an all-the-way victory last time out, so has to be in the mix.
1………………………..EL FABIOLO 4/9
2…………………………….JONBON 5/1
3………………….EDWARDSTONE 13/2
Odds supplied by Paddy Power