Nicky Henderson is 'hopeful' reigning two-mile champion Altior will make the Cheltenham Festival after a late injury scare.
The Seven Barrows handler has had vets working around the clock to help the ten-year-old recover from lameness.
Discovered on Sunday morning, the setback has been put down to an old splint that has been dormant, which started to trouble him just a few days before the race.
This morning he was confirmed as one of seven participants in Wednesday's feature contest, the Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase, but could still be pulled out if Henderson feels he is not A1.
He said: "We will obviously be monitoring the situation very carefully but both ourselves and our vets are personally happier this morning and are a lot more hopeful that he will make it."
Altior, the winner of 21 of his 24 races, is exercising on the water treadmill and has not missed any work, the trainer added.
If he skips the £400,000 contest, racing fans would be robbed of seeing him clash with other top contenders Defi Du Seuil and Chacun Pour Soi.
The trio are due to meet in what has been been billed as the race of the week.
Dynamite Dollars, Politologue, Sceau Royal and Bun Doran complete the seven-runner field.
Altior has drifted out to 100/30 with Unibet and Boylesports following the last minute hiccup, with Defi Du Seuil shortening at the head of the market.
