This year's Tote Cheltenham Gold Cup is shaping up into a true championship contest with some top-class performers set to do battle for the coveted trophy.
Earlier in the season chasing's blue riband looked a straight fight between last year's winner See More Business and the leading Irish challenger Florida Pearl.
But as the campaign has progressed several other contenders have emerged to challenge for See More Business' crown.
Gloria Victis is the young pretender.
The six-year-old booked his ticket for the Cheltenham Festival with an outstanding display under top-weight in the Racing Post Chase at Kempton Park.
Sent straight into the lead by Richard Johnson, the Martin Pipe-trained gelding set a good pace and, putting in some spectacular leaps, maintained the gallop all the way to the line.
He was briefly threatened by Marlborough as they turned for home but soon shook off that rival to stretch clear and land the £43,500 first prize by 10 lengths.
And Pipe warned there may be even better to come.
'The sky's the limit with him,' he said. 'He's really exciting. I've never been so thrilled about a horse before a race as I was about him.
'He's fantastic for a six-year-old and jumped for fun.'
Johnson was standing in for regular jockey Tony McCoy, who was sitting out a two-day suspension, and was impressed.
He said: 'He's a very, very good horse - the best I've ridden all season. To win like that with that weight was incredible.'
Gloria Victis will not have matters all his own way at the head of affairs at Cheltenham with the likes of Looks Like Trouble and The Last Fling sure to be vying for the lead.
Looks Like Trouble shot to prominence in the Gold Cup betting with a resounding performance in the Pillar Property Chase at Cheltenham in January when, apart from a couple of minor errors, he jumped soundly and galloped powerfully to slam last year's Gold Cup runner-up Go Ballistic by a distance.
Noel Chance's big gelding clearly goes well at Prestbury Park having won the Royal & SunAlliance Chase last March also by a distance.
Chance sent out Mr Mulligan to win the Gold Cup three years ago but the Lambourn trainer believes Looks Like Trouble has a better turn of foot.
Looks Like Trouble, recently described as '100%' by his trainer, is at his best on good ground and so long as it does not get too wet in the next week then he is sure to give a good account of himself.
Ever Blessed, who has not raced since storming to victory in the Hennessy Cognac Gold Cup in November, warmed up for the Gold Cup with a work-out at Kempton.
Trainer Mark Pitman said: 'I think the horse has improved. He's bang-on and hopefully with time we're spot-on for Gold Cup day. I was pleased with that, and I'm very happy with him.
'I think the Gold Cup is going to be a real good race. He'll stay and come up the hill and its bound to be a very fast run-race, and that's got to suit us.'
Ever Blessed, described as fragile by his trainer, is still relatively unexposed and is the dark horse in the Gold Cup line-up.
He is open to further improvement but whether or not he has made enough progress to trouble the very best remains to be seen and it may pay to look elsewhere for each-way value.
A likely outsider could be The Last Fling, who treated the big fences with contempt on the way to a spectacular 24-length victory over Niki Dee in the De Vere Gold Cup at Haydock.
The much-improved 10-year-old put on a splendid exhibition in the £100,000 handicap to hammer his six rivals and record his third win at the Merseyside track this season.
His jockey Seamus Durack, who has struck up such a fruitful relationship with Sue Smith's charge, said: 'High-class handicappers have done it before in the Gold Cup, so you've got to have a go.'
Florida Pearl, last year's beaten Gold Cup favourite, has suffered just one defeat in four starts this season when beaten a neck by Rince Ri at Leopardstown over Christmas.
He was short of peak fitness that day and has since shouldered top-weight to victory in a Leopardstown handicap in January and landed the Hennessy Cognac Gold Cup also at the Dublin track.
In the last-named race Willie Mullins' charge looked back to his best.
Florida Pearl was given a positive ride by Paul Carberry, who sent the eight-year-old to the front at the halfway stage and having taken his rivals' measure by the second last won easing down by five and a half lengths from Dorans Pride.
He seems to be finding his form at just the right time but doubts remain over whether or not this classy individual will stay the three and a quarter miles at Cheltenham at what looks like being a blistering gallop.
See More Business has done very little wrong since his famous victory 12 months ago when he sported blinkers for the first time.
The blinkers have now become a permanent fixture with the Paul Nicholls-trained 10-year-old winning all three starts this term.
See More Business has been favourite for Cheltenham since beating Simply Dashing and Looks Like Trouble by five lengths and the same at Wetherby in October.
And he went on to put up a career-best performance when winning his second King George VI Chase at Kempton at the end of December.
He followed up his 1997 win in the prestigious contest without turning a hair, jumping well and galloping on strongly to beat Go Ballistic by 17 lengths.
See More Business showed his well being at Newbury last month when he easily disposed of a decent field for the Aon Chase with his trainer predicting further improvement.
And Nicholls now reports his charge in good form.
He said: 'See More Business is in great order and in my opinion is a better horse this year than he was last year, as he's unbeaten since he won the race last March.
'The course at Cheltenham suits him as it seems to bring out the best in him. The ground won't be a problem as he's won on soft twice and good to firm this season, so whatever comes up, we won't be losing any sleep over it.'
See More Business remains the one they all have to beat but history is against him with L'Escargot in 1970 and 1971 the last horse to win back-to-back Gold Cups.
However, with a strong gallop guaranteed this tough performer can hold too many guns for Gloria Victis up the Cheltenham hill with The Last Fling providing the each-way value.
And if it became very soft on the third day of the Festival do not rule out the mudlark Young Kenny taking a hand in the finish at rewarding odds.
Tote Cheltenham Gold Cup betting:
William Hill: 6-4 See More Business, 5-1 Looks Like Trouble, 11-2 Florida Pearl, 6-1 Gloria Victis, 14-1 Ever Blessed, 20-1 Go Ballistic, 25-1 Rince Ri, The Last Fling, Young Kenny, 33-1 Brother Of Iris, Dorans Pride, Escartefigue, Spendid, Strong Promise, Young Kenny, 50-1 bar.
Coral: 13-8 See More Business, 5-1 Gloria Victis, 6-1 Looks Like Trouble, Florida Pearl, 14-1 Ever Blessed, The Last Fling, 20-1 Go Ballistic, 33-1 Rince Ri, Spendid, Dorans Pride, 40-1 bar.
Ladbrokes: 11-8 See More Business, 6-1 Gloria Victis, 7-1 Looks Like Trouble, Florida Pearl, 14-1 Ever Blessed, 16-1 Go Ballistic, 20-1 The Last Fling, Young Kenny, Dorans Pride, 40-1 bar.
