‘Very hard to beat’ - Champion Chase favourite Majborough will face up to 12 rivals

The second day of the Cheltenham Festival is set to be a cracker and the confirmations have been announced for Wednesday’s action. There are seven races in total, four of which are Grade 1s and we have a lot of talking points to discuss at the five-day stage.

Our feature race is the Queen Mother Champion Chase and odds-on favourite Majborough will face a maximum of 12 rivals. We’re going to take a look at the key contenders and go through some of the notable absentees.

Main contenders

Willie Mullins’ Majborough is going to be very hard to beat, provided his jumping doesn’t fall apart. He put Marine Nationale in his place with a devastating display in the Dublin Chase last time out and there aren’t too many obvious negatives attached to him.

Dan Skelton ’s L’Eau Du Sud has been pretty popular in the betting and he was last seen finishing 18 lengths behind Il Etait Temps in the Tingle Creek at Sandown. Mullins’ eight-year-old is almost certainly the second best horse in the race on that evidence.

It has to be said that he was very below par in the Clarence House Chase last time out but you can almost guarantee that his trainer will get him back to his best. Jonbon keeps his entry but recent news suggests he’s likely to skip Cheltenham and head to Aintree.

Outsiders

Quilixios hasn’t been seen since falling in this race last year so it’s hard to know what to expect from him, while it would be a surprise if promising novice Irish Panther's connections opt for this race rather than the Arkle on Tuesday.

Gordon Elliott ’s Found A Fifty got the better of Majborough at Cork in December but has been well beaten in three starts since. He has plenty to find on recent evidence and also holds an entry in the Ryanair Chase as things stand.

Solness won a Grade 1 at Leopardstown over Christmas but appears to be at his best at that track and was well beaten in last year’s Champion Chase. It’s hard to see him reversing the form with Majborough on the evidence of last month’s Dublin Chase. Only By Night is probably more likely to run in the Mares’ Chase on Friday, while Saint Segal Captain Guinness and Libberty Hunter have plenty to find on recent form.

Who has been scratched?

It’s no surprise that Marine Nationale was withdrawn, as he was reportedly suffering from a sore neck earlier on this week and Wednesday’s race will come too soon for him. With the defending champion missing, the race looks less competitive.

Dan Skelton has removed Calico and Thistle Ask, with the latter more likely to go to the Ryanair Chase on Thursday. The Vincent Halley-trained Senecia has also been taken out, as has Joe Tizzard’s JPR One, who could also be Ryanair Chase-bound.