Il Etait Temps Emerges Victorious in the Queen Mother Champion Chase

Il Etait Temps survived a costly mistake at the final fence to claim victory over the faltering odds-on favourite Majborough who dramatically faded into seventh place. 

Despite stumbling on the landing of the final fence, Willie Mullin’s eight-year-old galloped 10 lengths clear ahead of runner-up Liberty Hunter, followed by L’Eau De Sud.

Majborough who set off as the 5/6 favourite under Mark Walsh managed to take a dominant lead, putting early pressure on the rest of the field.

But a series of blunders caused the favourite to lose momentum, slowly nearing the back of the field three from the finish, giving a clear opening for the small but mighty grey horse and jockey Paul Townend.

Having been unsuccessful in three previous visits to the Cheltenham Festival and having fallen at his most recent start at Ascot, the Champion Chase winner bounced back to the form he showed winning the Tingle Creek in December.

Reflecting on Il Etait Temps’ heavy fall in January’s Clarence House Chase, Mullins said: “It took him 24 hours to recover when he came home. He was a bit shaken and then he had to get on the ferry and come home and that’s not how you’d like to do it, but it was a case of what we did and once he got home he settled into his routine and recovered quite quickly.

“I thought Paul was very brave on him today as obviously he couldn’t go the pace they were setting for the first mile, but I could see coming down the hill Paul was happy and he had his position coming to the final bend.

“I think the better ground maybe helped him. I was wondering whether he was a horse who didn’t like this place, but when went through his form at Cheltenham we found excuses for every day.

“Paul was very good on him today. I had a bit of a heart attack at the last, but it looked he had plenty of horse underneath him.”

Townend told ITV Racing: “There was a lot of work put into this horse after Ascot so I have a lot of people to thank.

“It shows how tough this lad is. He’s such a courageous horse again today. He was flat as a pan everywhere.

“I wasn’t going to force him but he just found his rhythm.”

This victory in the two-mile steeplechase seems a great recovery for the horse after his fall at Ascot earlier this season, giving Mullins yet another Cheltenham Festival winner.