The unmissable Sunday showdown: Asterion Forlonge v Envoi Allen

12.50 Punchestown
Sky Bet Killiney Novice Chase (Grade 3) | 2m4f, 5yo+ | RTV

It was on this very day, January 17, back in 1773 that HMS Resolution became the first ship to cross the Antarctic Circle. Fast-forward 248 years and it will take more than resolution if any horse is going to navigate their way past Envoi Allen – the unbeaten superstar of our sport who has won at the last two Cheltenham Festivals.

If ever there was a race to cure the January blues, this is it. The Sky Bet Killiney Novice Chase at Punchestown might only be a Grade 3 in name, but it is very much a Grade 1 in nature. It is truly fascinating.

We knew all along that Envoi Allen would be attending, but little did we think that Asterion Forlonge would be gatecrashing his party. He is getting special treatment too, an 11lb allowance which only adds to the intrigue.

Unbeaten, unrelenting and some say untouchable, Envoi Allen has done everything asked of him so far, but a question as tricky as this one has never been put to him. If he comes up with the right answer we will know for sure that we are in the midst of a machine.

Asterion Forlonge is a Grade 1 winner and not just any old Grade 1 winner but a wide-margin winning one. He was nine and a half lengths too good for Easywork at the line in last year's Chanelle Pharma Novice Hurdle at Leopardstown and that form was franked in the Ballymore when the runner-up filled the same position behind Envoi Allen.

The free-going grey likes to get on with things so this won't turn into a sprint. It is going to be a showdown to savour and it is one not to be missed.

'We could get beaten a length and still run a very good race' – Elliott

Gordon Elliott has said it won't be the end of the world if Envoi Allen surrenders his unbeaten record.

He has won four bumpers, including the Champion Bumper at the festival, four hurdle races culminating in his brilliant Ballymore win, and two chases, most recently the Drinmore at Fairyhouse.

That dazzling Drinmore performance was Envoi Allen's fifth Grade 1 victory and saw him register his widest-ever winning margin – eight and a half lengths.

That was a Grade 1 and this is a Grade 3, but this is a much tougher assignment and Elliott knows it.

Envoi Allen must give 11lb away to a Grade 1-winning hurdler in Asterion Forlonge and conditions will be softer than ideal too. If he passes this test, it could well be a career-best performance from the seven-year-old.

Elliott said: "He's in great form at home. It's a big ask to give 11lb to a Grade 1 horse, but this has always been my plan and I wasn't going to change my plan.

"Look, we could get beaten a length and still run a very good race. It's probably going to be his biggest task, but I'm happy with the horse and we'll take our chance.

"I just thought this was the right way to go with him. It's a bit like last year when we went from Naas in January on to Cheltenham. I said a month ago where I was going. If he gets beaten it will be disappointing, but it won't be the end of the world."

Gordon Elliott: 'This has always been my plan and I wasn't going to change my plan'Credit: Patrick McCann

Opportunity for Asterion to shake up the favourite

Willie Mullins has won this race twice in the last three years, but if Ireland's champion trainer is to make it three wins in four years he will have to do something that has never been done before – beat Envoi Allen.

The arduous task rests on the broad grey shoulders of Asterion Forlonge. He certainly looks like a chaser and the first impression he created over fences was very favourable when landing a beginners chase at this venue by six lengths in November.

That performance combined with a big reputation saw him sent off 4-6 favourite to win the Grade 1 Faugheen Novice Chase at Limerick over Christmas. Everything was going smoothly there until he met the fifth-last all wrong and came down. He was trading at 1.52 on Betfair at the time.

Who knows what would have happened had Asterion Forlonge stood up that day, and this will tell us how good he actually is.

These are his terms and conditions. It is common knowledge that he is better going right-handed despite his sole Grade 1 success being left-handed around Leopardstown in the Deloitte Novice Hurdle last February, while the course and the conditions are absolutely ideal.

He reached a rating of 154 over hurdles, concluding that campaign by finishing fourth to Shishkin in the Supreme Novices', and Mullins has always been adamant that he would be even better over fences.

If that is the case, Envoi Allen has a serious challenge on his hands as Asterion Forlonge could potentially make him run to a mark in the mid-160s. The race is tailormade for him according to the champion trainer.

Mullins said: "Asterion Forlonge schools very well at home and had jumped nicely at Limerick last time until making a mistake and paying the price.

"This is a nice opportunity to get his confidence back albeit with some serious opposition in Envoi Allen, but it's a race that suits us and we're going there to get more experience over fences."

Willie Mullins: 'This is a nice opportunity to get his confidence back albeit with some serious opposition in Envoi Allen'Credit: Patrick McCann

What the rest say

James Motherway, trainer of Dinny Lacey
We have a lot on our plate, but we have to go somewhere with him as he came out of his win at Limerick in great shape. He jumps well and is very accurate. The trip is a bit of an unknown, but we'll see how he goes.

Joseph O'Brien, trainer of Fils D'Oudaires and Sempo
You would have to be realistic and say that Fils D'Oudaires and Sempo look up against it taking on Envoi Allen and Asterion Forlonge. They're both in good shape and I hope that both will learn from the experience, but hopefully pick up some prize-money while they're at it.

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