Shorter trip of Champion Chase means Shishkin is no good thing for Cheltenham

There was something fragile about Saturday's SBK Clarence House Chase, as there would be about almost any great work of art. So much could have gone wrong in the days and weeks before to prevent it from happening and there was no guarantee the race would remain in the balance for the full four minutes, but in the end what we saw could not have been improved by any scriptwriter.

For all our fretting about small fields, here was new proof that just two are needed to make a race, provided they are the right two. Jump racing is hardly Ascot's core product but thankfully the Queen's track has persevered with the winter game, despite a regular shortage of runners for its conditions races; it has now staged two significant clashes in three seasons and added greatly to the sport's lore.

Nicky Henderson has often spoken of his regret in committing Altior to the 2019 battle with Cyrname and there must have been moments on Saturday when he was tensing in anticipation of another rueful drive back along the M4. Then came Shishkin's final, cathartic drive.