Alex Hammond previews Saturday's Randox Health Grand National and provides her 1-2-3-4-5-6 for the Aintree spectacular.
Alex – give us your 1-2-3-4-5-6 for Saturday’s Randox Health Grand National and why you fancy them.
Well, one thing we have to take into account this year is the fact that it feels like it hasn’t stopped raining since the start of forever! Aintree appears to have taken the rain well though and on Wednesday, the word heavy was taken out of the going description on the National course.
It will be soft though, so I’ve taken that into account when making my selections, but hopefully it won’t be as extreme as in 2001 when Red Marauder ploughed through the mud and only four horses finished the race.
It’s such a good contest this year, that I could have made a case for more than six, but I hope I’ve picked horses that can give us a really good run for our money with Sky Bet offering six places on the race – good luck!
- (All Sky Bet prices are non-runner/no bet, six places and Best Odds Guaranteed)
Total Recall
There is a strong challenge from Ireland this year (what’s new?) and although Willie Mullins appears to be losing his fight with Gordon Elliott to win this season’s Irish trainers championship, he might hold the aces in the Randox Health Grand National. Elliott is very well represented at Aintree but Total Recall is classy and may give Mullins the bragging rights on Saturday.
He began his career with the now retired Sandra Hughes and she gave him the best possible start in life by taking her time with the horse. As a consequence, he is just hitting top gear now at the age of nine and not only does he stay well, but he has a touch of stardust about him. Looking back at his career, he always looked to be the sort of horse that would excel with a fence and a trip and that has proved to be the case.
He won his first three starts for his new trainer, including the Ladbrokes Trophy (formerly known as the Hennessy). He reverted to hurdles after his Newbury win and added another victory to his tally, before falling in the Timico Cheltenham Gold Cup on his last start. The fact that Mullins ran him in that race tells you all you need to know and he wasn’t totally done with when he fell four out. He obviously enters unknown territory over this four-and-a-quarter mile trip but he handles the ground and Mullins knows what it takes to win a Grand National. He still holds an entry in another Grade One, the Punchestown Gold Cup.
Tiger Roll
So on to Gordon Elliott’s challenge. Tiger Roll lives up to his name and is a real little battler. He won the Cross Country Chase at the Cheltenham Festival and he stays well having landed the National Hunt Chase at Prestbury Park in 2017. The ground won’t faze him and he has proved adaptable over cross country fences, so Becher’s Brook, the Canal Turn and The Chair should be a walk in the park. He hasn’t been over-raced this season and should be fresher than some.
Blaklion
It’s hard to leave Blaklion out of the equation. Nigel Twiston-Davies is another trainer with a flair for winning the big Aintree marathon and this horse has had the benefit of a little breathing operation since we last saw him. Like Tiger Roll he hasn’t had too much racing this season, in fact he has had one less start than his rival with just three so far this term. He has a good record over these big fences finishing fourth in last year’s National before impressively winning the Becher in December.
Ucello Conti
Another leading contender for Gordon Elliott. I’ve backed this horse in the National the last two years, he was sixth two seasons ago and was unlucky when unseating 12 months ago. He should run a big race. In between those two National efforts he ran a stormer to be fourth in the 2016 Becher so his record is pretty solid. Elliott has trained him specifically for this and I’ll be disappointed if he doesn’t give us something to shout about. This will be just his third start since running in last year’s contest.
Captain Redbeard
It’s easy to jump on a bandwagon, but the recent press interest in this horse is justified. He is trained in Selkirk by Stuart Coltherd, so could we have another Scottish trained winner after One For Arthur last year? He will be ridden by Coltherd’s son, Sam, who is based with Sue and Harvey Smith in Yorkshire, so if you needed any clarification that this boy can ride, that is it right there!
Conditional jockey Sam has ridden this horse is almost all of his races and they have racked up nine wins together (including two in point-to-points). Any more rain that falls will be right up his street and he has some decent form in staying chases to his name. He’s no stranger to these fences either as he had a spin round in the Becher in December, running respectably to finish sixth. He should have finished closer too but was hampered four fences from home. All in all it points to a horse with stronger claims than most.
Anibale Fly (10/1 Sky Bet)
Barry Geraghty rides for Tony Martin, he was on board when the horse ran a blinder to be 3rd in the Timico Cheltenham Gold Cup at 33/1. He is well weighted on that performance and among the market leaders here. With a clear round he has to be in the mix.
So, to recap, here are my predictions with Total Recall just getting the overall nod.
