Grand National Entries: Check out the likely runners for Aintree showpiece
Delta Work, Any Second Now, Snow Leopardess and reigning champion Minella Times all feature among 65 entries received for the 2022 Randox Grand National, which takes place at Aintree racecourse on April 9. We take a look at all the entries here and provide the latest betting for the Merseyside marathon...
Fresh from beating dual Grand National and the now-retired Tiger Roll, Delta Work will look to emulate his legendary stablemate by using success in the Cross Country Chase as a springboard to victory in the Grand National, and the Gordon Elliott-trained raider is one of the leading fancies for Saturday's contest. Challenging Delta Work for favouritism is last year's third placed finisher Any Second Now, who warmed up for Aintree with a fine win in the Bobbyjo Chase, while the British charge could be spearheaded by the Charlie Longsdon-trained Snow Leopardess, who won the Becher Chase earlier in the season, and will be lightly-weighted for Saturday's race.
Henry De Bromhead's Minella Times will face a much stiffer task in this year's Grand National as he now has top weight following Chris's Dream's defection, but last year's emphatic winner is likely to be partnered by Rachael Blackmore once again, and he will be another leading Irish contender, while the likes of Escaria Ten, Enjoy D'allen and Longhouse Poet are another Irish-trained triumvirate that have stood their ground at the latest entry stage.
With only 40 runners able to head to the 4m 2f 74y start then there will be some unlucky horses that miss out at the bottom of the weights when the final declarations are made on Thursday.
With the rain set to hit Merseyside over the coming days the emphatic Classic Chase winner at Warwick and proven soft ground performer Eclair Surf has been heavily supported in the betting, but the Emma Lavelle-trained raider is still out of the top 40 horses, so will need a few to be scratched before the deadline later in the week.
Lucinda Russell's Mighty Thunder was a fabulous winner of the Scottish Grand National last season, and he will be aiming to land another notable marathon success at the weekend, while the Dan Skelton-trained veteran Blaklion has snuck in at the bottom of the top-40 runners along with Poker Party, who is currently sitting in 40th spot with a few days to go until the big race.
Colin Tizzard will go in search of his first Grand National success and he will be doubly represented by the likes of Fiddlerontheroof and Lostintranslation, while another notable British-trained raiders include former Ladbrokes Trophy winner Cloth Cap, who is set for his second run in the Grand National, while Kim Bailey's Two For Gold is another class act among the entry list.