The Queen Mother Champion Chase provided one of the most popular winners of last year's Festival when Sprinter Sacre reclaimed the prize after three years drought.
This year it's a different story, Willie Mullins' flagship horse Douvan is unbeaten in 14 races, and searching for his third Festival title.
Arguably Douvan is the biggest name in the Festival this season, Willie Mullins' seven-year-old has continued his outstanding season and goes back to Cheltenham in perfect shape. A winner of the Supreme in 2015, and the Arkle a year later, Douvan is as good as ever coming back off an encouraging Grade Two victory in Punchestown.
Advert
What's most impressive about him is his margins of victories, which have been nothing short of untouchable at recent times. This is his biggest test of the year, but he is the best in the race by a long way and with smooth run it's hard to envisage him being defeated.
Fox Norton is the strongest of the British challengers, the seven-year-old kicked off the season winning two handicap contests at this track including the Grade Two Shloer Chase. On his prep run for the Festival, he found Altior too good at Newbury finishing 13 lengths behind Nicky Henderson's star. He's never been within ten lengths of Douvan in their previous two encounters, and he'll need a big step up if he's going to turn the form.
Last season's Melling Chase victor God's Own returns to the Champion Chase, where he finished fourth last year. Tom George's nine-year-old hasn't tasted victory since lowering the colours of Vautour in the Punchestown edition of this race, finishing second in a handicap at Aintree before two third-placed efforts at Ascot and in the Grade One Tingle Creek Chase.
Advert
Special Tiara has finished third in the last two renewals of this race for Henry De Bromhead, the ten-year-old won the Desert Orchid chase on her penultimate start but was a long way off in the Clarence House Chase on trials day.
Kerry Lee and Davy Russell team up with Top Gamble who ran well in the Clarence House at Cheltenham earlier this season, meanwhile Nicky Richards' Simply Red and Gary Moore's Traffic Fluide will be hoping to pick up some each-way money.
Douvan is very hard to look past, he's been winning in tremendous style time and time again and it's very easy to see him adding another. We fancy the likeable God's Own to be the beast's closest 'challenger', so it could be worth chancing Tom George's charge for a place.
Selections (Scale of 1-5 Points)
Advert
God's Own 1pt E/W - 12/1 at BetVictor
Douvan (1/4) 1st, God's Own (12/1) 2nd - Straight Forecast at BetVictor
Words By: James Stevens.