It is over to Mr Haydock himself to rubberstamp his statue at his beloved track

It is over to Mr Haydock himself to save what was supposed to be one of the season's big Saturdays after sub-zero temperatures put the big clash between Energumene and Edwardstone at Ascot in the freezer for a week.

The Clarence House Chase will remain fresh now that it has been transferred to Cheltenham next weekend and it seems both parties are happy to stick to their original script. What a crying shame it would have been to throw out a showdown of such stature prior to the festival in March.

Ascot may have fallen foul of the big freeze but Haydock hasn't yet and how fitting it would be if the track's best customer treated us to another one of his party pieces. Bristol De Mai is to Haydock what Rafael Nadal is to Roland Garros. When the weather is at its worst, when the ground is at its deepest and when a battle turns into a real struggle, the gutsy grey gelding comes out of hibernation. The slower the conditions, the faster he seems to run.