PELE versus Messi, Lasse Viren matching strides with Emil Zatopek, Michael Schumacher wheel to wheel with Ayrton Senna, Sir Garfield Sobers head to head with Sir Ian Botham, and Roger Federer slugging it out opposite Rod Laver, who would win?

The educated retort is to undertake delaying tactics with a few muddying the waters words such as, different generations, equipment, training methods, tactics and conditions of combat, and then suggest that it is simply impossible to assess.

All those factors also apply to the sport we love and yet the difference with horse racing is that we have at our behest a more definitive way of compiling a measurement of performance. Sure, it’s not an exact science, but it gives us a strong guide as to which horse is possibly the greatest chaser of all time!

It’s a scenario, to a certain extent, distorted by the heart sometimes ruling the head, which is also partly dependant on your generation profile.

My late father always said that Donald Bradman was by far the greatest batsman of all time. Unlike dad, I never saw ‘The Don’ in the flesh and put up Vivian Richards as a viable challenger to that crown.

I then looked at the relevant stats in detail and finally bowed to his opinion and concluded, boy I would have given my left arm to see the son of Cootamundra at the crease. As for a certain offspring of Archive ...

Well you hear the tales and watch the grainy pictures of the languid Arkle winning three Gold Cups by an accumulative total of 55 lengths, giving in excess of 25lbs, yes 25lbs, successfully away in an Irish National and then rampaging over the smart Mill House in the Gallacher Gold Cup giving his arch-rival 16lbs and annihilating the course record to boot.

And yet there seems a need to have seen this ultimate racing beast in the flesh to fully admire and appreciate his amazing prowess.

So when I was asked to rank the greatest chasers I have seen and more specifically place Douvan in that hierarchy I am afraid that the likes of Golden Miller, Mill House, Flyingbolt and, of course, ‘Himself’ had to sit this one out.

DEFINING GREATNESS

So what defines great? The dictionary tells us that it is an ability, quality or eminence considerably above average. But what are the measurements of reaching such a zenith?

In the case of the current Champion Chase favourite it’s an easy question to answer on stone cold figures. Douvan is nine from nine over fences with an average winning distance of a shade over 12 lengths, having accumulated prize money just north of £500,000. Yep, that is somewhat above average, which requires plenty of quality and a lorry load of ability.

He is like a gazelle over his obstacles, has a proper turn of foot and travels like a purring Rolls-Royce in second gear, but then you already knew that. But the most jaw-dropping view of this son of Walk In The Park is that we have surely barely scratched the surface of his ability.

Their racing styles may be totally different, but rather like Desert Orchid, Douvan’s history-making years will probably lie over two and a half miles or more. It’s a simple formula, he will only be recognised as a contender for best chaser through my eyes if landing a King George VI or three and a Cheltenham Gold Cup title and, even more so, if securing both races in the same season.

After all, had David Elsworth not had the balls to go down the three-mile route and instead stuck to the minimum trip would we really have viewed the flying grey in such high esteem? Well maybe, but possibly not to the fullest extent.

MEASURING GREATNESS

So the next train of thought is how do I measure the greatest chaser I have seen in action?

First and foremost, the unclassified feeling of the unadulterated, undiluted excitement of seeing a top-class National Hunt horse in action has to be a part of the rating procedure.

Secondly, longevity is also a primary measurement; one-season wonders need not apply.

And thirdly, I didn’t want to choose a one-trick pony. In my eyes a chaser that has hit the heights over a range of distances, from two miles to three and beyond is worth an extra nod over those established as ‘merely’ champions over three miles plus or merely over shorter, apologies to Moscow Flyer fans.

That last point will I’m sure enrage a few of you, but the greatest athletes in any sport could do it all, couldn’t they? Pele, made and scored goals, could probably have played right back and been the best player on the pitch.

Garfield Sobers, was a world class batsman, bowler, fielder and captain; the ultimate cricketer.

Based on those rules of engagement, Dessie has to be a major contender. He gave masses of weight away in handicaps and achieved success in that arena from two miles right through to the three-mile, five-furlongs of the Whitbread Gold Cup (... and before you hit the roof, yes Kildimo gave him 1lb!).

But then cue his Irish Grand National victory at the age of 11, giving every horse bar Have A Barney two stone, and who can forget that jaw-dropping Victor Chandler battle with Panto Prince in 1989.

Denman was the last champ to do the ‘handicap thing’, twice in the Hennessy, but he would never have made a successful return to two and a half miles let alone 16 furlongs at the height of his career.

KAUTO STAR

Kauto Star only ran in two ‘limited’ handicaps and was actually beaten in one of those events by that star of stars, Monkerhostin, giving the Philip Hobbs’ runner all of 4lbs, oh the shame of it!

However, the French import scores high on longevity as he achieved the double-double of King George and Gold Cup in the same season, Best Mate achieved the same single milestone in 2002/2003, while Burrough Hill Lad could only hit the bulls eye in both races in the same calendar year, as did See More Business.

The five-time King George winner also scores heavily in the versatility category having bolted up in two Tingle Creeks before being nearly exclusively campaigned over three miles plus.

One Man, ranked a significant way behind the likes of Kauto Star and Burrough Hill Lad on official ratings, closes that gap in my eyes due to his versatility.

Like Desert Orchid he too managed to win Grade 1 events from two miles to an extended three, and in his pomp as well.

We all remember his 14-length success in the rearranged King George at Sandown in ’96, a year later he landed the Peterborough Chase over two and a half miles at Huntingdon and then, most famously, when he gave the purest of jumping exhibitions, the Champion Chase the following March.

Kauto Star may well have been able to drop to two miles and win a Grade 1 after winning a Gold Cup, but the fact remains he didn’t!

Best chaser I have seen in the flesh? Well as I said, it’s simply not an exact science, but close your eyes for one minute and visualise Kauto, Dessie, One Man and okay go on then, Moscow Flyer landing over the last fence as one over two and three-quarter miles with just a 220-yard run-in to negotiate. And the winner is... well unlike the answer given by Faye Dunaway at the Academy Awards, there is no right answer.

As for Douvan, a two-mile championship awaits, but if he doesn’t race over three miles at the top table then his talents could be wasted. That could mean, in time, he will merely be compared to the likes of Badsworth Boy, Viking Flagship, Moscow Flyer, Master Minded and Sprinter Sacre. What a terrible undercard that would be!

Oh and for your information... my knee jerk opinion is Pele, Zatopek, Senna, Sobers and Federer.