ALTIOR DOUBT Henderson star faces fight to be fit for Champion Chase after going lame

ALTIOR is lame and faces an uphill battle to make Wednesday’s Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase at Cheltenham.

The 10-year-old’s clash with rising stars Defi Du Seuil and Chcun Pour Soi in the twomiler – a race Altior has won for the past two years – was viewed by many punters as the race of Cheltenham 2020.

But the four-time Festival hero’s participation has been thrown in doubt by a splint issue discovered yesterday. “Unfortunately Altior was found lame this morning, due to an old splint that has been dormant,” reported the Seven Barrows trainer (right).

“It’s never bothered him before and typically it rears its ugly head now. We are working away and there’s lots we can do, but it’s an uphill battle.”

Big-race sponsor Betway reacted by pushing Altior out to

11-4 third favourite to rack up a Champion

Chase hat-trick. Defi Du

Seuil now heads the firm’s betting at 5-4, with Chacun Pour Soi next best at 6-4.

“He was sound as a pound yesterday – you wouldn’t have seen a sounder horse,” added Henderson, whose son of High

Chaparral overcome an injury scare to register his first success in the contest two years ago. “We have the treadmill and it’s very cold water, which helps these things a lot. We have to keep going. We are working away and we’ll either get lucky or we won’t.”

Soft ground has persuaded the trainer to bypass tomorrow’s Champion Hurdle – for which 17 runners were declared yesterday – with Verdana Blue, whose absence reduces his challenge to four, spearheaded by favourite Epatante.