RED-HOT favourite Majborough will face a maximum of 12 rivals in the Queen Mother Champion Chase at Cheltenham next Wednesday.

Following the defection of last year’s winner Marine Nationale, the Willie Mullins-trained Majborough is odds-on for the Cheltenham Festival’s day two feature, having put a couple of indifferent jumping displays behind him with a particularly impressive performance in last month’s Dublin Chase.

Frank Berry, racing manager to owner JP McManus, said: “He was very good at the Dublin Racing Festival, he handled the soft ground very well there and Willie is very happy with him – hopefully he can get there now in one piece.

“We’re looking forward to it and hopefully there is a bit of juice in the ground as that could be very important for him.”

McManus has a second potential runner in the admirable Jonbon, but he appears unlikely to take his chance at this stage.

“He’s confirmed in case anything was to happen to Majborough. Touch wood that doesn’t happen, but we all know what can happen with horses,” Berry said.

Mullins will also saddle Il Etait Temps, who needs to bounce back from a disappointing run and heavy fall in the Clarence House Chase at Ascot.