Defi Du Seuil proved a class above his rivals to extend his unbeaten record to four with an effortless victory in the JCB Triumph Trial Juvenile Hurdle at Cheltenham.
The 4-6 favourite breezed into a share of the lead with Coeur De Lion before the last,and although jumping the final flight big, he only needed to be shaken up by Barry Geraghty before scoring by a length and three-quarters.
He was cut to 6-1 joint-favourite for the Triumph Hurdle in March with Paddy Power.
Trainer Philip Hobbs said: "Barry was particularly impressed with how he jumped the last hurdle long and still did it very well. His words were 'he is on springs'.
"The big plus is that he is very sound, very tough and very willing and that's important. We are thinking from the Triumph Hurdle and working backwards.
"The Finale at Chepstow is two weeks away. We are not ruling that out but on the other hand, we are not going to get greedy."