First Gold's standing as Europe's champion chaser took a knock at Auteuil yesterday afternoon when JP McManus's gelding could muster only fifth place in the Grand Steeplechase de Paris.
Yet as the crowd welcomed a worthy winner in Daniel Wildenstein's Kotkijet, a concerned Francois Doumen was certain all was not well with his vanquished King George and Martell Cup victor.
His son Thierry had ridden a typically positive race, vying for the lead with stablemate Djeddah. This pair were closely tracked by Kotkijet and Ilare, the five-year-old running in France's premier chase just seven months after his racecourse debut.
Turning for home with two fences to jump, First Gold and Kotkijet had drawn clear, and there was nothing to choose between them over the final two obstacles but on the run-in it was Kotkijet who clicked into overdrive as First Gold started to weaken dramatically.
At the post Kotkijet, a halfbrother to Katko - a winner of this race three times - had half a dozen lengths to spare over Ilare.
While First Gold has been on the go, competing at the top level for the past seven months, Kotkijet has been wound up for this one race by 11-times champion French trainer Jean-Paul Gallorini at his Maisons-Laffitte base.
Michael Jarvis claimed his second Derby Italiano win after Morshdi (Philip Robinson) routed a big field to claim the £412,102 first prize in Rome yesterday.
Dermot Weld's Vinnie Roe fared best of the two Irish raiders in fourth. He was beaten six and a quarter lengths. Aidan O'Brien's King's County was eighth.
