X Factor Sensation Christopher Maloney Becomes Frontrunner

Last night's unexpected highlight on The X Factor - beside "Tulisha"-loving Viet Tien 'Jason' Ngujerv - was the audition of shaking 34-year-old Christopher Maloney.

The nervous singer won universal acclaim from Gary Barlow, Tulisa Contostavlos, Geri Halliwell and Louis Walsh for his audition, and the star is now a huge contender to win at 10/1.

According to Oddschecker, he is currently the top-rated hopeful in the Over 28s category, surpassing last week's breakout star Melanie Masson.

Christopher (Photo: WENN)

Ahead of him are Ella Henderson (7/1), Lucy Spraggan (7/1), Jahmene Douglas (15/2) and Kye Sones (8/1).

Popstar Starboy Nathan, who released his debut album earlier this year, is also listed at 10/1 after revealing that he auditioned for the show. His collaboration with Wretch 32 'Hangover' charted at No92 last year, and his album 3D peaked at the same position in May.

When we interviewed him last year, he said: "I honestly believe that if I didn’t have a management deal and I wasn’t using other channels, I would definitely have done X Factor, because the way I got my break in the beginning was doing talent shows.

"There’s much more to becoming an artist than being able to sing, and I feel the same way about X Factor as I do about anyone that might have a one hit wonder or something like that. There’s much more to sustaining a career than just having one part of it, so I don’t mind it if you’re gonna learn all the aspects of being an artist.

"People like JLS, they’re not just singers, they’re proper artists. They sing, they dance, they write songs, they do interviews, they work hard… for artists like that, I think it’s perfect."

Who are you backing on this year's show?

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