Bannow Bay's victory at Navan this afternoon failed to impress the Tote, who pushed him out to 6-1 from 5-1 for the Bonusprint Stayers' Hurdle at Cheltenham next month.
The Christy Roche-trained seven-year-old struggled home by a neck from Prince Of Tara in the McCabe Builders Ltd Boyne Hurdle over three miles in the hands of Charlie Swan.
That unconvincing performance prompted the Tote to harden slightly the odds of the market leader Baracouda, trained by Francois Doumen, to 8-11 from 4-5.
Another French hopeful Jair Du Cochet, who puts his Festival claims on the line at Fontwell tomorrow, is 4-1 second favourite.
