Confidence is in short supply as the King George serves up a Christmas head-scratcher

For those who like to tackle a Christmas puzzle, racing's traditional festive showpiece serves up a fiendishly difficult test. It is a puzzle that contains only six pieces, yet it is the very antithesis of simple. Anyone purporting to bet with confidence is playing an exceedingly brave man's game.

The problem for punters is any of the six runners could win the Ladbrokes King George VI Chase. The small but select line-up is packed with quality. Its intrigue stems from the fact every one of the Kempton contenders has a question to answer. 

Allaho was magnificent at his best but missed the whole of last season and had only an inferior stablemate and a 33-1 outsider to beat on his comeback outing in gluey ground at Clonmel, where signs of rustiness were evident.