Nicky Henderson fears the younger legs may again have the edge when Jonbon and Il Etait Temps square up for round three in the BetMGM Clarence House Chase at Ascot.
It's currently 2-0 to the Irish raider who proved too quick for the Henderson star in the the bet365 Celebration Chase at Sandown in the spring and the Betfair Tingle Creek Chase back at the Esher track in December.
Jonbon won the Berkshire showpiece last season but the trainer told Sky Sports Racing: "He’s very well and had a gallop on the grass yesterday because we couldn’t use it before then last week.
“He seems in very good form but you fear that grey horse of Willie's. He's beaten us the last two times and I can’t really pretend… you might have thought in the Celebration Chase we were at the end of a long season and he was a fresh horse, but I hadn’t got many excuses in the Tingle Creek I must admit.
“We hoped he might be staying at home but I always thought he’d be coming here and we’ve got to face the music. There’s a lot of prize-money on offer and we’ll give it our best, Jonbon always does. He looks fantastic and we’re hopeful he can run well."
Does Ascot help swing the advantage back towards Jonbon - a track where he's two-from-two in his career?
“He likes it, no doubt, but we know he loves Sandown too where the last encounter was and we got well and truly beaten. He was just a quicker horse than we are and Jonbon is at the veteran stage and they're not as quick as they were.
“I fear the younger, fresher legs. Jonbon is not as sharp as he was and doesn’t quicken like he used to. These are the races he has to go. We’ve won it before and he has to try and hold onto it but it will be a tough task this weekend."
The thriving Thistle Ask will looks to continue his rise through the ranks for the Skelton team on Saturday, with Gidleigh Park and JPR One completing the field.
Clarence House Chase - Paddy Power and Sky Bet prices: 8/15 Il Etait Temps, 4 Jonbon, 6 Gidleigh Park, 7 Thistle Ask, 33 JPR One
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