It’s Grand National day at Aintree and our man Andrew Mount looks to guide you to the winner with two tips in the big race and throughout the card.
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Posted: 4pm, Friday, April 12th
12.30 Chelmsford – BURABACK (1pt ew – 5/1 bet365)
Two of my tracker horses do battle here – The Defiant and Howzak – but both are out-and-out pacesetters and it’s hard to escape the conclusion that they’ll set it up for a stalker. Step forward Derek Shaw’s BURABACK – well drawn in stall 2 – who finished a good third on heavy ground at Bath last time on his first attempt at this 5f trip. He went into that race on the back of a pair of 6f Wolverhampton wins, handles Polytrack well and will be staying on to good effect.
1.20 Aintree – BOLD ENDEAVOUR (1pt ew – 25/1 Paddy Power, 22-1 generally)
I was annoyed with myself for not making BOLD ENDEAVOUR a ‘best bet’ at Cheltenham where Nicky Henderson’s eight-year-old ran fourth at 50-1 in the Pertemps Final. The Cheltenham ground was quicker than he prefers and the drying ground, coupled with his patient running style (usually an advantage in this race) can see him record another placed effort, just like stablemate Mill Green who ran third in this race last year having filled the same position in the Pertemps on his previous start.
2.30 Aintree – THE KING OF RYHOPE (2pt win – 5/1 bet365, BetVictor)
I wrote the following about THE KING OF RYHOPE after his close-up fourth in the Grade 2 Reynoldstown Chase at Ascot in February…
‘When I first looked at the race on Monday afternoon, I suspected that the plan with Dan Skelton’s THE KING OF RYHOPE was to gain further chase experience before his attention was switched to handicapping but I’d changed my mind by Saturday morning and backed the eight-year-old at the generally available 25-1, thinking he was overpriced. The son of Malinas was sent off at just 10-1 and ran a fine race to finish a three-length fourth, picking up almost £4,000 for his troubles. He travelled strongly in last place and looked set to lay down a winning challenge when he loomed up out wide, trading at just 2.10 in running, but he didn’t pick up as expected after hitting the last fence. He’ll be very interesting when handicap chasing, perhaps at the Cheltenham festival.’
He skipped Cheltenham to wait for this 3m1f handicap chase, a race his stable landed 12 months ago, and the hint should be taken. I’ve also played him in a reversed forecast with TWIG.
4.00 Aintree – CHEMICAL ENERGY (0.5pt ew – 50/1 bet365, William Hill)
4.00 Aintree – MEETINGOFTHEWATERS (1pt win – 11/1 generally)
The drying ground has been enough to persuade me to side with CHEMICAL ENERGY in the Grand National. Gordon Elliott’s eight-year-old a good record in the warmer months (March to November), recording form figures of 11012185112P6 (6-13), and he possesses stamina in abundance.
Seven-year-old MEETINGOFTHEWATERS has only had six runs over fences but such inexperience has not been a barrier to success since the fences were modified in 2015 with horses aged ten or older failing to register a win from 139 runners in that period. He’s improved significantly since joining the Willie Mullins yard and had a lovely prep at Cheltenham when third in the Ultima.
5.00 Aintree – MASTER CHEWY (1pt win – 12/1 bet365, 11/1 generally)
MASTER CHEWY was running a good race in the Arkle when coming down two out – taking his record at that venue to 288F (0-4) – and will be much happier on today’s flatter course. His chase record away from Cheltenham stands at 12214 (2-5), with the fourth place excusable on account of being badly hampered. His two runs here produced a win and a three-quarters of a length second to Djelo (who could again prove to be the main threat) and he looks over-priced.
7.00 Yarmouth – EIGHT MILE (1pt win – 7/1 with bet365)
They went hard up front in division two of the BetMGM: It’s Showtime Amateur Jockeys’ Handicap at Southwell last month and the race was set up for the closers, with 100-1 chance Sirius White coming from midfield to score by half a length from 12-1 shot Belleplaine (‘dwelt start, towards rear’). George Scott’s EIGHT MILE fared best of those to chase the strong early pace in fourth and his two-length defeat was worthy of a major upgrade. The cheekpieces go on today, he’s well drawn in stall 3 to get cover from the forecast crosswind and his latest win came at today’s venue.
Andrew Mount’s Best Bets
12.30 Chelmsford – BURABACK (1pt ew – 5/1 bet365)
1.20 Aintree – BOLD ENDEAVOUR (1pt ew – 25/1 Paddy Power, 22-1 generally)
2.30 Aintree – THE KING OF RYHOPE (2pt win – 5/1 bet365, BetVictor)
4.00 Aintree – CHEMICAL ENERGY (0.5pt ew – 50/1 bet365, William Hill)
4.00 Aintree – MEETINGOFTHEWATERS (1pt win – 11/1 generally)
5.00 Aintree – MASTER CHEWY (1pt win – 12/1 bet365, 11/1 generally)
7.00 Yarmouth – EIGHT MILE (1pt win – 7/1 with bet365)
The King Of Ryhope
MeetingofthewatersAndrew Mount’s tips for Saturday, 13th April 2024.
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