UNFORTUNATELY the race of week turned out be rather underwhelming due to key absentees but even so the winning effort of Politologue represented a fine illustration of all that is great about two-mile chasing.

The grey won’t go down as a vintage Queen Mother winner and the bitterly disappointing effort of the favourite Defi Du Seuil meant that a stellar effort wasn’t required to lift this year’s renewal. However, this victory once again showed what Paul Nicholls can achieve when he has the material.