Altior© Photo Healy Racing
Altior did exactly what was expected of him by easily winning the Racing Post Arkle Challenge Trophy.
It would have been interesting had Charbel not fallen two fences from home, but the brilliant 1-4 favourite readily batted away runner-up Cloudy Dream from there to score by six lengths.
Trainer Nicky Henderson said: "They went a good gallop and Charbel was still galloping away, but we jumped and travelled well. We knew he'd come up the hill. He's very, very good and there's a lot to look forward to. We've gone down the chase route and we'll have to stick to that now."
On immediate plans, he added: "It's not the sort of thing we need to jump to straight after the race, but there's no reason why you shouldn't run again, Sandown would be the obvious way of going but he won't go to Aintree. If he's going to run again, I would have thought Sandown."
Charbel's jockey David Bass said: "I'm fine. It was a very tricky fence and it claims quite a few of us.
"He didn't jump it badly, he just knuckled on landing."
Henderson went on: "That was the one that had to win. It takes an awful lot of pressure off us.
"I feel sorry for Kim's (Bailey) horse (Charbel). I hope he's OK because he's run a great race. They were only upsides at the time.
"He's done it well and jumped very well from what I could see. On we go.
"This is only his first season over fences. Hopefully Douvan will do his job (in the Champion Chase) and then maybe we will all meet up again next year.
"Altior has done nothing wrong and jumped really well."
A philosophical Bailey said of Charbel: "David hadn't even asked him a question. That's life.
"He jumped the fence fine and just knuckled over, but he's fine. It's a difficult fence."
Charbel made most of the running until he miscalculated the penultimate fence.
Altior was in second place at that stage, and was left in the clear under Nico de Boinville.
Yorkshire challenger Cloudy Dream gave chase, but he was never going to catch Altior, who has now won his last 10 races. Ordinary World was third, another nine lengths away.
De Boinville said: "You are aware of the expectation, so you just try to do it justice.
"They went a good gallop and it took me a while to get the gears, but after the last he has taken off.
"He travels and jumps, wherever you put him in the race."
