Richard Hobson says his impressive Chepstow winner Fugitif is "flying" ahead of a potential Grade One assignment.

Richard Hobson is hoping to run the eight-year-old at the Cheltenham Festival, but has the Grade One Clarence House Chase on his radar at Ascot later this month.

The son of Ballingarry was an impressive winner of the Coral Get Closer To The Action Handicap Chase on December 27. Fugitif won at 6/1 and was eased down after going clear three out to beat Golden Whiskey  by five lengths on soft ground.

The performance followed a good earlier run at Cheltenham in November, where the gelding was second, two-and-a-half lengths behind Amarillo Sky in a two-mile handicap chase.

"He's flying, it was a very good race, very competitive," Hobson said of the Chepstow win.

"There were good horses in there and the way he did it was just awesome.

"I was really pleased with him. He loved those conditions and they are key to him – he has a big action that eats up that ground and that did go in his favour."

Lifted 10lb in the handicap after the Chepstow victory, Fugitif is now rated 143 and is likely to head to either the Lingfield Winter Million meeting for the racehorselotto.com Handicap Chase or to Ascot.

"He has Lingfield on January 20 and he's in the Clarence House as well on the 21st, that could be a possibility if it came up really soft," said Hobson.

"The long-term plan, if he were to go to Cheltenham, would be something like the Plate over two and a half (miles) – that'd be right up his street."