Nicky Henderson and his team are working around the clock to try and get defending champion Altior to the starting tape for the Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase but time may yet run out.
The winner for the last two years, the 10-year-old was found to be lame on Sunday and the short-term prognosis doesn’t appear favourable. If he doesn’t make it in his attempt to become the first chaser to win the Grade 1 since the legendary Badsworth Boy in the 1980s, it would leave just six runners to fight it out to become the new champion two-miler.
Table of Contents
Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase Recent Winners
| Year | Winner | Age | Jockey | Trainer |
| 2019 | Altior | 9 | N de Boinville | N Henderson |
| 2018 | Altior | 8 | N de Boinville | N Henderson |
| 2017 | Special Tiara | 10 | N Fehily | H De Bromhead |
| 2016 | Sprinter Sacre | 10 | N de Boinville | N Henderson |
| 2015 | Dodging Bullets | 7 | S Twiston-Davies | P Nicholls |
| 2014 | Sire De Grugy | 8 | J Moore | G Moore |
| 2013 | Sprinter Sacre | 7 | B Geraghty | N Henderson |
| 2012 | Finian’s Rainbow | 9 | B Geraghty | N Henderson |
| 2011 | Sizing Europe | 9 | A Lynch | H De Bromhead |
| 2010 | Big Zeb | 9 | B Geraghty | C Murphy |
| 2009 | Master Minded | 6 | R Walsh | P Nicholls |
| 2008 | Master Minded | 5 | R Walsh | P Nicholls |
| 2007 | Voy Por Ustedes | 6 | R Thornton | A King |
| 2006 | Newmill | 8 | A McNamara | J Murphy |
| 2005 | Moscow Flyer | 11 | B Geraghty | J Harrington |
| 2004 | Azertyuiop | 7 | R Walsh | P Nicholls |
| 2003 | Moscow Flyer | 9 | B Geraghty | J Harrington |
| 2002 | Flagship Uberalles | 8 | R Johnson | P Hobbs |
| 2001 | NO RACE | |||
| 2000 | Edredon Bleu | 8 | T McCoy | H Knight |
| 1999 | Call Equiname | 9 | M Fitzgerald | P Nicholls |
| 1998 | One Man | 10 | B Harding | G Richards |
| 1997 | Martha’s Son | 10 | R Farrant | T Forster |
| 1996 | Klairon Davis | 7 | F Woods | A Moore |
| 1995 | Viking Flagship | 8 | C Swann | D Nicholson |
| 1994 | Viking Flagship | 7 | A Maguire | D Nicholson |
| 1993 | Deep Sensation | 8 | D Murphy | J Gifford |
| 1992 | Remittance Man | 8 | J Osbourne | N Henderson |
| 1991 | Katabatic | 8 | S McNeill | A Turnell |
| 1990 | Barnbrook Again | 9 | H Davies | D Elswort |
Champion Chase Trends
- 94 per cent of the last 17 winners had run in the previous 70 days.
- 95 per cent of the last 38 winners had started at odds of 10/1 or shorter.
- 87 per cent of the last 15 winners had not run more than three times in the current season.
- 94 per cent of the last 18 winners had won a Grade 1 chase previously.
Horse Racing Betting at Betway
Champion Chase Best Odds
 |
 |
 |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Defi Du Seuil | 13/8 | 7/4 | 7/4 |
| Chacun Pour Soi | 5/2 | 2/1 | 2/1 |
| Altior | 11/4 | 11/4 | 3/1 |
| Dynamite Dollars | 16/1 | 20/1 | 18/1 |
| Sceau Royal | 20/1 | 25/1 | 20/1 |
| Politilogue | 20/1 | 20/1 | 20/1 |
| Bun Doran | 66/1 | 66/1 | 66/1 |
(Betting Odds were taken from Unibet, Boylesports & Betway on March 10, 2020 at 10:30GMT)
Champion’s crown may be slipping
A fully-fit Altior would have made a decent fist of holding off the young pretenders but it would be a miracle if he was ready for this having been declared lame at the weekend.
He has already lost his unbeaten record over fences this season and, though having excuses that day, was far from impressive when beating Sceau Royal and the returning Dynamite Dollars in the Game Spirit at Newbury (Bun Doran fell).
Though a four-times Festival winner, the fact that he has drifted out to a best 3/1 with the sponsors speaks volumes.
Defi out to prove himself the top two-miler
Successful at The Festival last year in the longer JLT Novices’ Chase and also in the Triumph Hurdle in 2017, Defi Du Seuil has won both the Tingle Creek and the Clarence House this term over 2m.
He has the stand-out form over this trip this season and is a deserving favourite given he appears to handle most types of ground as long as there is soft in the description – now a general 7/4.
Pour Soi pour vous?
CHACUN POUR SOI didn’t reappear until December and was beaten at Leopardstown.
However, the winner of that race is a hot favourite for the Ryanair and Willie Mullin’s lightly-raced eight-year-old duly went one better on a return visit when still looking short of peak condition.
Bookmakers appear to have forgotten that he comfortably saw off Defi Du Seuil at Punchestown last spring and, if he handles Cheltenham’s gradients, he could be the value at 5/2 with Unibet.
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