Racing Post Ratings: Hewick wins marginally below-par King George VI Chase on a card when Il Est Francais proves the star

With three horses boasting Racing Post Ratings of 177 or above, it was potentially a strong running of the Ladbrokes King George VI Chase. However, Allaho, Shishkin and Bravemansgame had questions to answer and, while all three performed with credit, none ran up to their best, paving the way for dour stayer Hewick to land a first Grade 1 over fences.

His RPR of 173 falls just a pound shy of the ten-year-average winning mark for the race and, if he gets his ground again in March, a bold showing in the Cheltenham Gold Cup would not be a surprise.

Shishkin (172) was at the head of affairs when stumbling after the second last. He was in the process of running an excellent race, while the arguably unlucky Bravemansgame (172) ran his best race of the season.