Sprinter Sacre appears increasingly unlikely to run in the Desert Orchid Chase at Kempton on 27 December.
Trainer Nicky Henderson reports the brilliant eight-year-old in fine fettle, but is instead leaning towards sending him to Ascot for the Clarence House Chase on 17 January.
Before that, though, the Seven Barrows handler wants to give him a racecourse gallop over the Christmas period, which would see him miss the Desert Orchid.
Henderson said: "He galloped (on Friday) and was very keen and very strong - it was good to watch.
"His work this morning was considerably closer to our old mate, so there are reasons to be cautiously optimistic.
"I'm still keen to have a racecourse gallop with him, rather than send him straight to a race.
"The Clarence House Chase is there and Barry (Geraghty, jockey) is keen to get a gallop into him and then go to Ascot.
"You'd want a racecourse gallop before having a race, and the gallop would have to be over Christmas."
