2024 Grand National Ante-Post Preview & Tip – DS
2024 Grand National Ante-Post Preview & Tip
We are going to have a new look race in 2024. The powers that be have decided to reduce the maximum field size so this year, we’ll have just 34 runners. As ever, the big Irish yards dominate the entries. Gordon Elliott has 26 of the 94 entered and Willie Mullins has 13. Is it a good thing that two trainers have over 40% of the entries for the UK’s most prestigious steeplechase? Not in my book, but that is where we are at. Hopefully we can find the winner this year, Dave Stevos’ 2024 Grand National Ante-Post tip is below.
2024 Grand National
This is a race I have struggled with in the last few years. The last winner I backed was One For Arthur back in 2017 but since then, it has been slim pickings. Last year I put up three horses for the race and they finished 12th, 15th and pulled up. Not great.
So who is going to be carrying the weight of the Stevos’ shilling this year? Mouse Morris will be a relieved man because I was close to putting up Foxy Jacks at 50s. His X Country win in November at Cheltenham was franked by Latenightpass subsequently but I worry that the X Country chase at Cheltenham in March may be his seasonal target.
Trained For This
One horse that looks like he will be trained with this race in mind is I Am Maximus. Trained by Willie Mullins and owned by JP McManus, this 8yo son of Authorized announced himself as a stayer to be reckoned with in the Irish National at Fairyhouse last year. He won that by a length off 149 and this year, he has raced solely in Grade 1 company.
On his seasonal reappearance back at Fairyhouse he pitched up in the Drinmore Chase. I didn’t give him much of a chance of winning that 20f Grade 1 but he did so decisively, beating Found A Fifty by 2.5L. The runner up has since won a Grade 1 himself at Leopardstown over Xmas and he was only a neck behind Il Etait Temps in another G1 at the Dublin Racing Festival this month.
Lenient Mark
The English handicapper has decided to let I Am Maximus in here off 159, just 1lb higher than his official Irish rating. Clearly, he wasn’t impressed by his last two runs at Leopardstown over 24f when well beaten by Galopin Des Champs. However, I doubt he was off a yard for either of those runs and if they were hoping to protect his mark, it was mission accomplished.
Willie Mullins hasn’t given this fella any entries for the Cheltenham Festival. He is due to run in the G3 Bobbyjo Chase at Fairyhouse this weekend and that will be an ideal prep run for this. He’ll be giving 12lbs to the well fancied 2023 Grand National runner up Vanillier in the Bobbyjo so if he beats him, he’ll be looking well treated as he only has to concede 8lbs to him at Aintree.
Ease In The Ground
Most of I Am Maximus’ best recent form is on soft ground. However, he has won and run well on good and yielding ground in the past so once there is a little bit of an ease in the ground, he should be absolutely fine.
He proved he stays at least 29f at Fairyhouse last April and if he runs well this weekend, I can see his odds of 25/1 shortening considerably. Hills are going 25s for 5 places with non-runner, no bet. At those odds, I Am Maximus has to be worth backing e/w.
