Aintree selections Saturday 5th April
A warm National day and an extremely classy renewal of the big race should offer an excellent highlight to the meeting. I have three fancies for the big race, headed by a novice who should love the drier ground. The supporting card is strong too and I am looking at three other races on the afternoon. We were narrowly denied victory in the Topham when Lisnamult Lad was caught close home but still collected for each-way purposes (22/1) as did James du Berlais (advised 12/1).
Aintree 1.20: Bill Joyce
A few non-runners due to the drying ground here, but currently BILL JOYCE stands his ground and I like his chances transferring from graded novice company to a handicap.
The O’Neill yard has been going strongly all week, including a similar first time in a handicap winner in Wellington Arch yesterday. He started the season, and his hurdling career, in style with an easy win at Carlisle on decent ground in the autumn before following up with an authoritative success in a Grade 2 at Sandown.
A third behind The New Lion in the Grade 1 Challow at Newbury was more than respectable, but he was a little disappointing coming up the hill at Cheltenham last time having travelled well for a long way. That was still strong form and an opening handicap mark of 136 looks realistic. A tongue-strap is fitted for the first time today and perhaps a flatter track can bring about a stronger finishing effort. The good ground might also help him keep up his strong cruising speed to the finish.
Aintree 2.30: Happygolucky & Docpickedme
Another field decimated by withdrawals, but it still looks an open contest nevertheless.
HAPPYGOLUCKY won this very race in 2021 off a 10lbs higher mark and has been very lightly raced since, largely through having had a near two year absence through injury. Having switched to the Mel Rowley yard this season he has shown more than enough to suggest he retains his ability, which makes him potentially very well handicapped.
His comeback at Cheltenham in January showed plenty of promise, finishing fifth in a hot handicap and he built on that to finish fourth at the Festival behind Myretown. It would be reasonable to expect him to progress again for that outing and we know he handles this track well.
DOCPICKEDME has improved with every run this season culminating in a brave win in the Great Yorkshire at Doncaster last time. That enhanced an already strong record at that track where the ground tends to stay decent all winter and he will enjoy the conditions he finds at Aintree today.
A 4lb rise for today looks fair and that win was no fluke as he had only just been touched off by Charlie Uberalles in another valuable Doncaster the handicap the previous month. A front-runner usually, that style of racing has been successful all week at Aintree.
Aintree 4.00: Minella Cocooner, Iroko & Hyland
With such a high quality field and a maximum 34 runners, it is sensible to have a few goes at the National and I am having three attempts.
MINELLA COCOONER has been laid out for this all season and has been performing respectably at the highest level off even weights with some of the top chasers.
He has never threatened to be a Gold Cup horse, so it is of little concern how far he was beaten in three Grade 1’s this winter. He won’t have been fully tuned up for those and perhaps his fourth at Fairyhouse last time was more informative. However it is his form in handicaps at this time last year that brings him into the equation.
He ran a cracker to be second in the Irish National on really heavy ground last season. As a result he did really well to come out less than a month later to win the Bet365 Gold Cup at Sandown. That was on good ground and perhaps suggests that is his favoured surface. Only 6lbs higher today I think this stamina test will bring about further improvement.
IROKO is the least exposed having only run twice at 3m. The first occasion was over hurdles at this meeting in 2023 when third in the Grade 1 novice, that coming off the back of success at the Cheltenham Festival in the Martin Pipe. The latter was also here when chasing home Inothewayurthinkin over fences last season, form that looks pretty good now.
Although he is yet to win in four attempts this season, his campaign has clearly been marked out entirely with today in mind an as a result he remains well weighted. He chased home Grey Dawning at Kelso last time which should have set him up nicely for today but encouragingly his very best form to date has been saved for big fields which augurs well for this.
First choice though is HYLAND a novice who has been a revelation over fences.
He just scrapes into the race off a nice low weight and is very much a good ground specialist. Two convincing successes in the autumn over 3m at Cheltenham suggest he is ready for a stamina test like this as he stormed up the hill on both occasions.
Since then he has finished runner up in two top class races at Kempton where arguably the sharp 3m was too sharp a test. Certainly that appeared the case in the Ladbrokes Trophy where he was right out the back until storming home into second up the straight. He might not have been quite cherry ripe that day with this race in mind.
Aintree 5.00: Kalif Du Berlais
Having sidestepped Cheltenham, KALIF DU BERLAIS could be worth siding with against two horse involved in a dramatic Arkle finish.
A decent juvenile hurdler last season, it was no surprise to see him sent over fences this season given his size and scope. He jumped and travelled well on debut at Carlisle until a fall four out (perhaps slightly unsighted by the low sun) but has shown no ill effects from that since and jumped well.
Two comfortable wins at Newbury and Cheltenham followed and it is perhaps best to ignore his run at Sandown last time which came over 4f further and on heavy ground. This keen racer might be best at 2m for now and he will come into this fresh.
Recommended bets:
1pt each-way – Bill Joyce – 1.20 Aintree – 6/1 general (most bookies 1/5 odds 1st 5)
1pt each-way – Happygolucky – 2.30 Aintree – 6/1 general (most bookies 1/5 odds 1st 4)
1pt each-way – Docpickedme – 4.05 Aintree – 7/1 Ladbrokes (1/5 odds 1st 4)
1pt each-way – Minella Cocooner – 4.00 Aintree – 14/1 Ladbrokes, Coral (1/5 odds 1st 5)
1pt each-way – Iroko – 4.00 Aintree – 8/1 general (most bookies 1/5 odds 1st 6)
1pt each-way -Hyland – 4.00 Aintree – 22/1 general (Skybet, Paddy Power 1/5 odds 1st 6)
1pt win – Kalif du Berlais – 5.00 Aintree – 9/4 general
