Il Etait Temps is set to try to re-establish his status as favourite for Cheltenham’s Queen Mother Champion Chase with a new Grade One objective at Ascot on Saturday.
The Willie Mullins-trained grey is one of a handful of entries still left in the Bet MGM Clarence House Chase, the weekend’s top-flight centrepiece, and was quickly installed a 4-9 favourite to win it.
Il Etait Temps hasn’t been seen since the start of last month when an impressive winner of Sandown’s Tingle Creek Chase. On that occasion he had nine lengths in hand of Jonbon, the defending Clarence House title-holder, who is set to run again on Saturday.
The Irish star catapulted himself to the top of the betting for the two-mile crown on the back of that Tingle Creek rout.
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Since then, however, Marine Nationale’s luckless effort when just beaten by Solness at Leopardstown, after recovering from a bad jumping error, means the defending champion is favourite for Cheltenham in most ante-post lists.
Il Etait Temps is a general 11-4 second best with most firms, but another resounding cross-channel performance might change that.
As well as Jonbon, Saturday’s entries include the transformed bargain buy Thistle Ask, winner of the Desert Orchid at Kempton over Christmas.
Whether the £11,000 (about €12,600) purchase into Dan Skelton’s yard is now in the reckoning for Champion Chase glory will be put to the test at the highest level.
“He has been amazing, really, and we are very proud of him. We are well into bonus territory already and we will go fly his best flag in the Clarence House Chase.
“I know he will run his race, if that is good enough to win then great, but if it is 15lbs behind Jonbon and others then that is what it is. He will run his race, and I can guarantee that, as he is very reliable and he is training really well,” said Skelton.
“He has surpassed what we thought he would do for us by six wickets. How can you have expected him to do what he has done; he has been remarkable. We are very lucky to have bumped into him and that is all it is. Sometimes you bump into one in life, and we have done that with him.
“There are a lot of things in his favour here. He is going right-handed over two miles and he is in form. All those things are ticks in his boxes for having a go at a race like this,” he added.
Skelton’s former Ryanair Chaser champion Protektorat is on course to try and win Sunday’s valuable Fleur Du Lys Chase at Windsor. It is the highlight on the last day of the Berkshire Winter Festival, which starts on Friday.
“He’ll turn up for the Fleur de Lys and in a weird quirk of the system he doesn’t get a penalty. The likes of Handstands and others who turn up might have to give him a penalty. It’s a weird scenario to be in.
“He’s in great form. We trained him specifically for the race and we couldn’t be happier with him,” said the trainer.
Flat racing in January might seem incongruous to most Irish racing fans, but Dundalk’s busy January schedule continues on Tuesday afternoon. It is one of six meetings on the all-weather this month. Only next November, with eight fixtures, will be busier in 2026.
Even at this time of year, Joseph O’Brien’s massive resources extend to five runners on Tuesday, and his cousin Hugh Horgan could benefit on Dancingondiamonds in the opening mile-and-a-half maiden.
It will just be the gelding’s second start, but O’Brien persevering with him looks significant in itself. Declan McDonogh will be aboard the trainer’s Electric Night, who looks a big contender in a later conditions event.
