Irish Grand National Tips
The Irish Grand National is the feature race on Easter Monday at Fairyhouse. The 3m5f contest is a traditional part of the Easter programme in Ireland and it has attracted another strong field.
A total of 46 runners remain at the latest entry stage, including the defending champion, Lord Lariat, who prevailed by an impressive four lengths in 2022.
Some of the other notable horses with entries include Royale Pagaille, Thedevilscoachman and Espanito Bello.
Selection: Thedevilscoachman
Next Best: Chemical Energy
Thedevilscoachman just the ticket for Irish Grand National
It has been an excellent campaign over fences for novice chaser THEDEVILSCOACHMAN. He has been victorious in three of his four assignments this season, with his only defeat coming when he came down in the Grade One Drinmore Novice Chase at Fairyhouse.
Noel Meade’s runner may return to Grade One company next season, as there is likely to be a lot more to come from this horse. However, you cannot blame his connections for having a shot at the Irish Grand National at this stage, as their horse can take advantage of his mark of 147.
Four of the last eight renewals of this marathon contest have been won by seven-year-olds, including 12 months ago when Lord Lariat scored from a mark of 137. Thedevilscoachman ticks all the right boxes for this race. He has shaped like he would appreciate much further than he has been running over, and barring one mistake at Fairyhouse, his jumping has been good.
JP McManus’ racing manager Frank Berry indicated after his latest victory at Limerick that this horse enjoys soft ground. The conditions should be just right for him at Fairyhouse.
Elliott In with A Great Chance of Second Success with Chemical Energy
Gordon Elliott won the Irish Grand National in 2018 with General Principle. He has nine entries at the latest stage this year, which means he could be responsible for a large percentage of the field. His best chance of a second victory in the race looks to be with CHEMICAL ENERGY.
The seven-year-old began the season with back-to-back victories over fences. He broke his maiden as a chaser at Listowel (2m1f). He then stepped up in distance at Cheltenham to blow his rivals away by 61 lengths in a contest over the extended 3m trip at Prestbury Park.
Elliott’s runner was no match for Thedevilscoachman at Naas back in January, but he then took a big step forward at the Cheltenham Festival, finishing a close second behind Gaillard Du Mesnil in the National Hunt Challenge Cup (3m6f). Willie Mullins’ runner is fancied to run well in the Grand National at Aintree later this month, so that is solid form. He was also 12 lengths clear of the third-placed horse in that race when crossing the line.
Chemical Energy is one of the few horses in this field that has proven he handles this distance. This will be just his sixth start over fences, so he also remains open to further improvement.
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