It was plain sailing from that point on and Exotic Dancer stayed on strongly to score by 18 lengths from a tired Our Vic. McCoy was happy to settle the progressive seven-year-old well off the early gallop and did not ask him to take up a more prominent role until the pace began to quicken down the back straight.

Our Vic and Neptune Collonges had traded blows for much of the race and both were still travelling powerfully on the run to the thirdlast.

Irish novice Cailin Alainn was still very much in contention when taking a crashing fall at that fence, just in front of the eventual winner.

Exotic Dancer was not unduly inconvenienced by the fall, however, and swung for home behind the duelling leaders.

Timmy Murphy asked Our Vic to take command on the approach to the second-last fence but it was at that obstacle that he made his first real error. And with Neptune Collonges paying the price for a sloppy leap, McCoy soon found himself in splendid isolation on the winner. Exotic Dancer flew the last and stayed on stoutly to prove his stamina over the testing trip, while 2-1 favourite Our Vic plugged on to claim second.

Welsh National winner Halcon Genelardais (7-2) was never travelling particularly well and finished a further seven lengths away in third.

"He's a grand horse and he's been improving all year, " said O'Neill after the race.

"He had good hurdle form and he jumps fences really well. AP (McCoy) has got the hang of riding him now and maybe we've got the hang of training him. He just loves this course and jumped well and travelled well so I was never worried and to be fair to him, he galloped all the way to the line and I'm thrilled to bits with him, " he said.

Tony McCoy was also delighted with the run. "I knew he was a decent horse when he won the Paddy Power as he came from so far back off such a slow gallop.

"He jumped very well today and he seemed to see the trip out very well. I was a bit worried after the second-last that I was on my own as he's a little bit quirky but he kept going. On that form he's a very good horse and if he was going to stop he would have done it today."