He can sometimes be slow getting from one side of a fence to the other even on soft ground. Here, on very fast ground he was slow over three of the fences and only just got up on the run-in, running a few lengths below his best on my ratings.

Taquin Du Seuil couldn’t cope with two miles on fast ground but has now won four of his other five chases and finished a close second to Oscar Whisky when losing.

I’m inclined to think that Taquin Du Seuil will not stay three miles. Few former flat racers do. The more I see of him, the more I think he’s a natural two and a half mile horse. On soft ground he’s tough to beat over that distance, and even on a fast surface he’s capable of winning a top race, as he showed here.

The runner-up Uxizandre (40) jumped boldly in the lead and nearly managed to make all. He slowed the pace down slightly from the fourth to the 10th and then picked it up again but just got caught late.

He’s run below form when held up a couple of times. He’s also jumped left once and lost all three times he’s tackled right-handed tracks.

Double Ross (39) has run one big race after another at Cheltenham and ran right up to his best to finish a close third.

Felix Yonger (37) lost ground coming down the hill but then staged a powerful rally to gain quite quickly before tiring from before the last. His only win in six tries beyond two and a quarter miles came in a beginners’ chase. Over two miles he’s twice earned ratings of 43 from me. I’d still regard him as pretty much unbeatable over the shorter trip on anything but soft ground.