With the Cheltenham Festival in the books and the flat season kicked into gear by Doncaster, the National Hunt campaign is finally coming to its climax. The last big hurrah in Great Britain, the Aintree Festival encompasses the world-renowned Grand National, a race that stops the nation.
Although the Grand National is the main event, the Aintree Festival itself is an extremely exciting three days of racing, with eleven Grade 1 races to look forward to. I’ve gone through the Aintree card and found four horses I believe can run massive races at this historic meeting, and hopefully make us some brilliant profit!
Well-backed on the day in the 2m 4f Golden Miller at the Cheltenham Festival, Mengli Khan ran a massive race to finish third and an even better performance can be expected here. He was upsides the eventual one-two at the second-last, not finding much on the stiff run-in to finish nine lengths third.
Aintree is a different test and he should be much happier at this venue. The ground looks to be falling perfectly for him and with Gordon Elliott finishing the season strong, Mengli Khan can earn his first Grade 1 success over fences.
Finishing second in this race twelve months ago off five pounds lower, Theinval has placed off this mark previously and arrives to Aintree as a fresh horse. He always hits his best form when the spring months begin and with any rain of no real concern to him (placed last year in softer going), he looks a big price to run a huge race for Nicky Henderson.
I’ve been really impressed by Precious Cargo on both his hurdling runs this season, winning his hurdling debut at Kempton in January despite being far too keen. He built on that performance with a devastating turn of foot at Sandown subsequently under a penalty.
He strikes me as a type who can only improve for the more experience he gains and Nicky Henderson has farmed this race in recent years, winning five of the last eight renewals. This son of Yeats is potentially the sixth.
Another horse who has really caught my eye this season is Lake View Lad, who has done nothing but improve for Nick Alexander. He arrived at the Festival looking for a hat-trick in the Ultima Handicap Chase, finishing a very gallant third after rallying gamely in the closing stages.
His jumping has been a major asset so I think he’ll take really well to the National fences and he will set off from the Aintree start off a weight of 11st 1lb, which puts him in the ideal range. If he was trained elsewhere, I have no doubt he’d be a shorter price, but underestimate Alexander at your peril!