Frost set for an early Present
THE popular Bryony Frost and PRESENT MAN (1.30, nb) have the right ingredients to land the Becher Chase over today’s Grand National fences at Aintree.
The pair made it a second successive victory in last month’s Badger Ales Trophy at Wincanton, where Present Man put in a faultless round of jumping.
Having never fallen in his 22 races, the eight-year-old will be in his element round this course.
Frost showed her ability to ride this track when finishing fifth on Milansbar in last season’s Grand National won by Tiger Roll.
Blaklion has an excellent record on this course. He won last year’s race and was also fourth behind One For Arthur in 2017 Grand National.
The nine-year-old represents the danger along with Don Poli who showed that he is class act when third in the 2016 Cheltenham Gold Cup behind Don Cossack. This talented gelding returns after a long absence but the vibes from his trainer Gordon Elliott suggest that he is expected to go close.
One For Arthur, another returning from a long break, will find it tough against DOUBLE SHUFFLE (2.05).
The Tom George-trained gelding, who is rated 8lb higher than One For Arthur, has run some cracking races in defeat, notably when second to Might Bite in last season’s King George VI Chase at Kempton.