Hobbs is chasing the brandy

Philip Hobbs trains the horse who beat the horse who beat Best Mate.

And the Somerset-based trainer is hoping One Knight can give the form of last year's SunAlliance Chase another handsome boost when he carries topweight in the Hennessy Cognac Gold Cup at Newbury on Saturday.

One Knight overcame some sloppy jumping to hold Jair du Cochet at Cheltenham and has had Saturday's £110,000 handicap as his target ever since the summer.

"He's never been beaten first time out, but having said that he's won most of the races he's run in," said Hobbs. "He made a complete horlicks of the cross fence on his second start over fences at Newbury last year, but he was a complete novice then. We're 12 months further down the line now, and the fact that Jair du Cochet beat Best Mate at the weekend certainly helps the form."

Newbury have replaced a reigning monarch with a Rolling Stone to present the trophy for Saturday's big race after an alternative engagement prevented the Queen attending. Ronnie Wood will do the honours in her absence, but Hobbs reports that racegoers will have to wait a little longer to see his Champion Hurdler Rooster Booster in public again.

He added: "It's straight to the Bula Hurdle at Cheltenham on 14 December for him.

"He knocked a joint early on this season, which held him back slightly, but he's been ready to run for a while now and it's just a case of getting the right ground."

Jair du Cochet remains on course for the King George VI Chase at Kempton over Christmas, but Guillaume Macaire has refuted any suggestion that his jockey Jacques Ricou provides limited assistance to his stable star.

"The English have been very hard

on me and my jockey, but Jacques knows the horse so well and it is a perfect marriage," he said.

Meanwhile, the government's desire to sell the Tote to a racing trust remains strong even though the subject seems unlikely to figure in the Queen's Speech when parliament opens tomorrow.