Tiger could well bid for National hat-trick

Hat-trick chasing Tiger Roll and 2021 winner Minella times have been handed the same rating as the weights for the 2022 Aintree Grand National were revealed today.

Forty horses will line up at Aintree on Saturday 9th April to tackle the 30 fences and 4m 2f 74y course in the 174th running of the race which has a total prizefund of £1 million.

Tiger Roll became the first horse since Red Rum in the 1970s to win consecutive Grand Nationals when he was triumphant in 2018 and 2019.

However, Covid forced the cancellation of the race in 2020 and connections chose not to run him in the 2021 renewal.

If successful again in 2022, Tiger Roll would join Red Rum in the history books as only the second horse to win the Grand National three times and like last year's winner Minella Times, the 12 year old is rated 161 and set to carry 11st 4lb.

Minella Times won the 2021 Grand National, helping to create history for jockey Rachael Blackmore who became the first female rider to win the iconic contest.

Speaking after the weights for the world's most famous horse race were revealed Tiger Roll's trainer Gordon Elliott confirmed that his charge is in good form and could well take his chance at Aintree.

Now Elliott, who celebrated Grand National success for the first time in 2007 with Silver Birch, is aiming Tiger Roll at a record-equalling sixth Cheltenham Festival victory next month before a potential trip to Aintree in April.

“He is in very good form at home. We have been training him for Cheltenham all season and we are really looking forward to going back there,2 confirmed Elliott.

"We will see how Cheltenham goes but he has got a nice weight so the Grand National could be on the agenda.

“The ground was too soft the last day for him. He is coming to himself at home and we are looking forward to running him back at Cheltenham.

“We decided to run him in the National in 2018 as he had lost his way a little bit so we had to try and rejuvenate him and it really worked for him. I was nervous going into the next year’s Grand National but it was a dream come true to win it for a second time with him. He was very good on the second occasion.

“To have a horse like him is a dream come true but to win two Grand Nationals with him has just been awesome and I’m very lucky to have him. I do think there is still a more in him and we are certainly not finished yet.”

Elliott believes he goes into this year’s Grand National with one of the “best hands” he has ever had as his stable superstar Tiger Roll bids to make horseracing history.

The three-time Grand National-winning trainer currently has 19 horses entered in this year’s Aintree showpiece including multiple Grade One winners.

While Tiger Roll will attract more attention than any of Elliott’s other entries, his Cullentra House stable will have plenty of other contenders come Saturday 9th April.

“It looks like it might be one of my best hands in the Grand National as we look to have a lot of great chances," said Elliott.

"You would have to be looking forward to the likes of Mount Ida, Run Wild Fred and Death Duty, who is a dual Grade One winner that at the moment is off 10st 1lb, which looks a lovely weight. Hopefully he creeps in to the race.

“Conflated (11st 10lb) will be going to Cheltenham, while the aim is the Gold Cup with Galvin (11st 10lb) and he would only run in the National if anything happened in the Gold Cup.”

Elliott also ran the rule over some of his other entries for the race:

Delta Work - (11st 3lb)

“He is a definitely a possibility for the Grand National. He might not quite be up to Gold Cup class anymore. We were half thinking about the Grand National and it looks like he has got a nice weight there. He got jarred up at Leopardstown last season and I just don’t think he has quite been the same horse since. I think there could be a bit of work left in him and I think this is the route to go with him now. I think he could easily take to these fences.”

Run Wild Fred - (11st 1lb)

“That looks a lovely weight for him. He could go for something like the National Hunt Chase at Cheltenham but I think he could be a National horse after that. He was second in last year’s Irish Grand National and he ticks a lot of boxes. He is a very consistent character. Taking in the Irish National is a good route to go before having a crack at the Grand National. He is a big staying chaser and I think he could easily be a Grand National horse. He has that touch of class about him as well.”

Battleoverdoyen - (11st)

“He suffered a nasty fall the last day but I wouldn’t rule him out. He will probably run between now and the Grand National but we will see. I suppose you would question if he would stay. You just never quite know what stays the National trip. He is a good horse having won a few Grade Ones in his times.”

Mount Ida - (10st 13lb)

“She definitely runs and she looks to have a nice weight. She will contest the mares chase at Cheltenham first. She won the Kim Muir last year and she stays very well. Like Run Wild Fred she ticks a lot of the boxes you need to be a Grand National horse. The Grand National has been the plan since last year with her. She hasn’t had lots of races but she is a good mare. I think she stays very well and she could be made for the Grand National. A mare hasn’t won the race for a while but Magic Of Light was a good second behind Tiger Roll so mares can run well in the race.”

Escaria Ten - (10st 9lb)

“He will go straight to the Grand National, that is the plan with him. I probably ran him a bit quick in the Irish National after running him in the Irish National. I’d say he just got tired the last day in the Thyestes. He is a big horse and he is hard to get fit and he just needed the run last time. He ran a very good race behind Galvin in the National Hunt Chase last year and that form is very good. I think he should go well over those fences.”

Farclas - (10st 9lb)

“He was fifth in the race last season and this has been the plan all season to send him back to Aintree again. He will go straight there. He had been busy last season so it was a bit of a surprise that he ran so well but we trained him for the race this season. To finish fifth as a seven year old I thought was a good effort myself. By keeping him relatively fresh hopefully he can go a few places better but you never know.”

Samcro - (10st 9lb)

“He has had a lot of problems with his sinuses but we have had them sorted again and the plan is to go straight to the Grand National. He is a very good horse on his day. We are just hoping these fences might light him up so we are going to go straight there. He has had a couple of problems but he is in good form now and we are looking forward to running him in the Grand National.”

Coko Beach - (10st 7lb)

“Soft ground is the real key to him. If we got a soft ground Grand National he would have a good chance as he is a good horse. He is in good form but we will have to keep an eye on the weather as to whether he would run or not.”

Braeside - (10st 5lb)

“The intention is to run him as well if he gets in. He will run in the National Hunt Chase and then go to the National. He made a mistake in Thyestes and a bit like Death Duty that just put him out of the race a little bit. He has been really good since then. He has already won the Cork National on heavy ground and he stays very well but he ran well in the Paddy Power at Leopardstown on good ground. He is a smart horse apart from what happened the last day.”

Milan Native - (10st 2lb)

“Nothing happened for him in the race last year but we’ve not had the cleanest run with him. We are touch and go whether we get in there or not.”

Death Duty - (10st 1lb)

“He could get in off number 65 on the list and if he does he would have a nice mark. The way he won on Sunday he could be a real Grand National horse. It was great seeing him win at the weekend as there has been a lot of drinks between his wins. All the girls in the yard have done a really good job with him. I’m really delighted with the way he won. If he gets in off that sort of weight he could be dangerous. I was always hoping that he could get his head back in front. I fancied him in the Thyestes after his run at Christmas but he just made a mistake and it didn’t happen then. I was very happy with the way he ran on Sunday.”