Tony Bloom's Energumene beats a horse owned by a Palace Fan and wins the Champion Chase at Cheltenham Festival

Trained by Willie Mullins and ridden by Paul Townend, the 6/4 favourite crossed the line ahead of the six other horses, including Editeur Du Gite, owned by lifelong Crystal Palace fan Steve Preston.

After the race, Brighton man Bloom joked that he had a ‘couple of quid’ on his own horse.

The Brighton owner said: “He has done me proud. He ran a magnificent race and totally deserved to win. We are so fortunate to have such an amazing horse. He didn’t run at his best last time out but has shown his class today.”

Bloom will be hoping this day can get even better when Brighton play their arch rivals Palace at the Amex Stadium tonight.

Roberto De Zerbi’s side will be looking to win a M23 derby for the first time in seven games, before continuing their quest to win the FA Cup on Sunday, when they welcome League Two giant-killers Grimsby Town for their quarter final tie on the south coast.

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Bloom told ITV Racing: "We have a huge game against Crystal Palace tonight so I will focus on that now ahead of Grimsby in the FA Cup this weekend.”