The second day of Aintree’s Grand National meeting is here as the big one on Saturday draws ever closer.
Friday’s itinerary is headed by a fascinating renewal of the lucrative Melling Chase, with almost every runner arriving with some sort of chance.
Clive Gildon provides his analysis on the feature as well as some other selections on day two of Aintree’s flagship meeting, where they race from 1.45-5.15, with the Melling Chase itself due off at 3.30.
3.30 – Melling Chase (Grade 1, 2m4f)
A fair case can be made for six of the seven runners in the Melling Chase, Minella Drama being the exception.
Jonbon is the best horse in the field, but missed the Cheltenham Festival due to a perceived problem with the health of Nicky Henderson’s runners.
Envoi Allen and Pic D’Orhy are good horses but will not get their ground. Protektorat and Conflated stay three miles and should relish a real stamina test.
If there is one horse who is underestimated in the early betting, however, then it must be Easy Game. For starters he is trained by Willie Mullins and ridden by Paul Townened. Secondly, since April 2021, his form figures following breaks of 53 days or more read 121111101.
He has not been seen since September, but produced a top effort then, dominating Gentlemansgame and Envoi Allen on testing ground at Gowran Park. We can back this team to have him ready for the big day.
1.45 - Mildmay Novices’ Chase (Grade 1, 3m1f)
The Mildmay Novices’ Chase should be a superb affair. All six are good enough to win this on their day, but I keep gravitating towards Heart Wood for Henry de Bromhead, who bagged a couple of big winners at this meeting in 2023.
Heart Wood bolted up by 14 lengths when last seen in an ultra-competitive Dublin Racing Festival handicap over 2m5f. There is every chance he can improve again for a longer trip in the Mildmay, and I like to have horses who avoided a dust up at Cheltenham on my side at this meeting. Slow ground is no concern for him.
Broadway Boy, who also missed the festival, is second on the list with first-time cheekpieces a possible source of improvement. He turns up following 90 days off and Nigel Twiston-Davies will have his stable star ready for the big day on a surface he enjoys.
2.20 - Handicap Hurdle (2m4f)
Strong stayers with a touch of class are going to be required in the handicaps at this meeting. Springwell Bay is one of those and, as a proven three-miler who showed plenty of class when a close second at Musselburgh on his latest outing, is of interest dropping back to 2m4f on testing ground.
The topweight has been campaigned sparingly this term and may just be coming nicely to the boil for Jonjo O’Neill.
He was sixth in a vintage running of the Grade 1 Mersey Novices’ Hurdle at this meeting last term and may have something in hand off 145.
Theatre Man was backed off the boards for the Plate at the Cheltenham Festival last month but didn’t negotiate the third fence. Backing horses following a fall is risky, but he reverts to hurdles off a 4lb lower mark and is capable of going well.
He followed home Ginny’s Destiny in the novice handicap chase on Cheltenham trials day two starts ago and that appeals as top form.
2.55 - Top Novices’ Hurdle (2m½f)
It will be interesting to see whether the boys or girls hold sway in the Top Novices’ Hurdle.
Three of the runners contested the Supreme. Firefox (third) can be deemed unlucky not to have finished closer to runner-up Mystical Power as he found his path blocked in the straight on the dash for home.
However, Dysart Enos is taken to get one over on the geldings for Fergal O’Brien. She was fancied for the Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle before lameness ruled her out, although that harsh reality may actually help her here given she is fresh.
The track at Aintree clearly suits. She was an easy nine-length winner in the mares’ bumper at this meeting in 2023 from Golden Ace and that mare, following her Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle strike, comes out fractionally best on adjusted Racing Post Ratings.
Dysart Enos may possess a turn of foot the others lack and gets the vote to secure sweet redemption for her connections.
4.05 - Topham Handicap Chase (2m5f)
The Topham is a superb spectacle around the National fences and Henry de Bromhead appears to hold a strong hand with Life In The Park and Shantreusse, who should both enjoy the surface. This could be a big day for the stable.
Rachael Blackmore’s ride, Life In The Park, has been trained as if a spring campaign has been prioritised.
He was unconsidered in the betting when sent off a 28-/1 chance for the Plate (his first outing since September) last time and outran those odds with an excellent fourth when sporting a first-time tongue-tie. The run may have brought him forward and the aid is retained.
He looked as if a stronger test of stamina may be required there, but a thorough stayer with a good jumping technique is valuable in this race and he fits the bill.
Jumping off Shantreusse may have been a tough decision for Blackmore, as she conjured a good second out of him at Navan in February as a prep for this more valuable prize.
Darragh O’Keeffe’s mount remains quite unexposed as a chaser and has time on his side to build on a productive novice hurdle campaign from two seasons ago, during which time he landed a Grade 3 at Clonmel before going off at odds of just 12/1 in the Albert Bartlett.
