Il Est Francais had been off since recording a brilliant success at Kempton over Christmas with connections targeting the Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris.
Returning to action on Saturday in the Grade 2 Prix Murat at Auteuil, Il Est Francais was expected to improve for the run in the two mile six furlong contest with a tilt at France's 'Gold Cup' in the offing; he was, however, still expected to take all the beating.
However, James Reveley was sending out the distress signals at the top of the straight for the final time and even looked to pull his mount up only to find no route out for Il Est Francais with a horse on his outside.
Il Est Francais popped over that final obstacle and was allowed to come home in his own time.
At the business end of the race there was a good battle fought between Youtwo Glass and Gallipoli, a stablemate of the favourite, with the former coming out on top at 25/1 to compound a bad few minutes for trainers Noel George and Amanda Zetterholm.
Betfair Sportsbook pushed Il Est Francais out to 8/1 (from 9/4 favourite) for the King George VI Chase at Kempton Park on Boxing Day. He is out to 20/1 with Betfair and Paddy Power for the Cheltenham Gold Cup from 8s.
Connections opted to change tactics with Il Est Francais, holding their charge up rather than allowing him to stride on and George felt this contributed to his defeat, saying: “I’m obviously a bit disappointed with Il Est Francais. The horse raced a bit freely and he didn’t channel his energy properly. That cost him in the end.
“The aim was to teach him a good lesson in view of the Grand Steeple. Maybe the horse was too fresh, and we had given too much thought to the Grand Steeple. He’s going to get a lot fitter. We need to think about how we’re going to ride him (in future), so as to channel his energy accordingly.
“Given that he’s so easy in the morning, it’s really difficult to know what condition the horse is really in. Few are able to lay up with him.”
Regarding the runner-up, George added: “Despite getting beaten, Gallipoli ran a blinder. He was a bit more relaxed during the race, and the fact that he has had three races under his belt this year has helped.
“We’re going to head to the Grand Steeple with him, he’ll have a good chance in that race. He’ll be a bit fresher.”
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