The Grand
National at Aintree is one of the biggest races of the season in the
UK and a contest off which punters love to try to find the winner.
Due to the make-up of the race - 40 runners who are handicapped to
have an equal chance of coming out on top - it poses a great
challenge for those placing a bet.
Here are three
horses which tick all the right boxes ahead of the 2018 steeplechase
and could add their name into history in Merseyside.
Definitly Red
Definitly Red
went into the Grand National 2017 as one of the fancied runners in
the field, however, unfortunately for his connections, he was pulled
up before the ninth fence. A mistake at the sixth obstacle looked to
hamper the horse and he never really recovered.
The
nine-year-old goes into his second attempt at the 4m2f contest in
even better form this time around. Brian Ellison’s runner won the
Many Clouds Chase at Aintree back in December, while just last month,
he
landed the Grade Two Cotswold Chase by eight lengths in a field
which included Bristol De Mai and American.
The options over
the next couple of months are endless for Definitly Red as his form
has been good enough for the horse to take his chance in the
Cheltenham Gold Cup at Cheltenham and for him to travel across to the
Punchestown Festival in Ireland. The Grand National looks the most
likely route though and as long as he learns from his mistake in
2017, he should be battling it out at the finish this time around at
Aintree.
Total Recall
One of the
leading Irish horses set to compete in the Grand National this year
is Total Recall who has been faultless this season with three
victories in three stars for Irish Champion Trainer Willie Mullins.
The nine-year-old moved stables back in September and it has worked
for the horse as he has found a huge improvement from the change in
scenery.
Mullins has only
once won the Grand National as he was successful in 2005 with
Hedgehunter. The Irishman has dominated the Cheltenham Festival
meeting over the last few years but he will be hoping to improve his
record at Aintree when Total Recall lines up in the 40 runner field.
Arguably Total
Recall’s best win so far this season came in the Ladbrokes Trophy
Chase at Aintree where he scored by a neck ahead of Whisper. He then
returned at Leopardstown in a handicap over hurdles to ensure he kept
his mark down over fences.
Total Recall is
a top
price of 20/1 on the Oddchecker comparison page of all the
bookmakers betting on the race. His odds are likely to shorten the
closer we get to the race as punters like to get behind Mullins’
runners, especially when they have the form behind them like this
chaser does.
Vicente
Vicente lined up
in the 2017 Grand National as former Champion Trainer Paul Nicholls’
leading hope, however, his time in the race did not last very long as
he came down at the opening fence. Despite that disappointment,
connections of their horse got some decent compensation as just weeks
later, he won the Scottish Grand National, a victory which would have
been unlikely if he wasn’t as fresh as he was due to the failure at
Aintree.
His
success in the 2017 Scottish Grand National was his second win in
the feature race at Ayr. That proves the nine-year-old is very
comfortable at long distance races over four miles. The only concern
with the horse is that he is prone to the odd mistake over his fences
as we saw on his last start at Chepstow where he unseated his
jockey, Sam-Twiston Davies.
All Grand
National winners get a bit of luck in running at Aintree, whether
that is with a clear passage around the track or by recovering from a
mistake, therefore, Vicente is worth sticking with as if things
do go his way, he is more than good enough to take advantage to give
Nicholls his second-ever winner in the race.
Good luck with
your bets and remember to take the odds on your selection as most
runners in the Grand National are shorter when the runners set off.