Cheltenham Festival Tips: Take Jonbon to land Champion Chase at 3/1

• Mark previews the Champion Chase

• El Fabiolo not for him at odds-on

• He's siding Jonbon to beat his old rival

• Check out our Cheltenham Festival Ultimate Guide

For most of the winter the Queen Mother Champion Chase has been billed as one of the biggest clashes at the Festival, with El Fabiolo and Jonbon locking horns once again.

However, the lustre appeared to be taken off it somewhat with Jonbon's uncharacteristically poor effort when second in the rearranged Clarence House Chase at Cheltenham last time, where he never really travelled and all but came down with a bad mistake four out.

I'm not absolutely convinced that Jonbon was 100% on the day there, being very much on his toes beforehand, albeit that not too unusual for him, and never seeming comfortable even before that shuddering error.

Jonbon's only previous defeat over fences came when second to El Fabiolo in last year's Arkle and, being realistic, he'll need to improve if he's to get the better of his old rival, though he'd likely have been shorter than the currently available 3/14.00 to do so if he'd won last time.

Let's not forget he does own a win over El Fabiolo, that coming over hurdles in Grade 1 company at Aintree in 2022, so it's not inconceivable that he can come out on top this time. He's also reported to have schooled well since his last start.

Chinks in El Fab's armour

El Fabiolo will be a tough nut to crack, though, and is clearly one of the best chasers in training, but he does heave a mistake in him and will need to be foot perfect if he's to add this contest to last year's Arkle success.

There's also a little niggle with his tendency to jump right, which again isn't ideal when dealing with a Championship race over 2m.

Of course, these are potentially minor problems when you look at his form as a whole and he's clearly been the best in this division so far this season, but that's fully factored into his price of 4/91.44.

The veteran Edwardstone benefited from a change of tactics last time, when he made all the running on the way to a crushing win in the Grade 2 Game Spirit Chase at Newbury last time.

The 2022 Arkle winner should ensure there's no hiding place for the big two if adopting those tactics again, and the expected strong pace will place the emphasis on accurate jumping even more than usual.

While El Fabiolo is the most likely winner, I've little interest in backing him at odds-on and am happy to take the 3/14.00 about Jonbon, the current disparity in the pair's prices probably a little wider than it should be.

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