Horse Racing Preview - Aintree Festival (Ladies Day) - 7th April 2017

Aintree 14.20 – Crabbies Top Novices Hurdle (Grade 1)

Today’s horse racing preview comes from Aintree Festival on Ladies Day. It is starting to look as if Nicky Henderson has too much fire power going into this week to not land this year’s trainer’s title and is very well represented here with River Wylde.

The Grade 2 Dovecote Novices winner ran a cracker to finish third in this year’s Supreme at Cheltenham behind Labaik and the well regarded Melon. This galloping and flat track should see him come on again and looks hard to beat.

Main dangers look to come from the Jefferson yard with the smart Mount News who won the Grade 2 Kelso Novices by forty nine lengths. His only decent run came at Wetherby when just denied. He has bags of potential but will have to find something to beat River Wylde this afternoon.

Best of the rest looks to be Moon Racer who was pitched in the Champion Hurdle instead of taking the Supreme route and if bouncing back, he has serious claims with his good turn of foot.

River Wylde : 2pt win @ 11/4 (BOG)

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Aintree 15.25 – JLT Melling Chase (Grade 1)

I was quite surprised to see Fox Norton being turned over in the Queen Mother at Cheltenham when runner up to Special Tiara who basically ran them into the ground.

The Colin Tizzard seven year old should be making amends this time around on this quick flat track. He has a good traveling engine and if able to dictate matters from the front he should fend of all challenges to land a well deserved prize.

Dangers look to come from Uxizandre who’s second to Un De Sceaux at Cheltenham looks really good form considering coming off a two year lay off and would not discount the Manifesto winner from two seasons ago.

Fox Norton : 2pts win @ 10/3 (BOG)

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Aintree 17.15 – Weatherbys Private Bank Standard open NH Flat (Grade 2)

We see a few that make a re-appearance from the Cheltenham champion bumper this afternoon, notably Western Ryder who finished fifth that day, just one and half lengths behind Claimantakinforgan who finished third.

The Warren Greatrex’s trained son of Westerner would have to come into the equation from his listed win at Ascot this year, if producing that and has come on from Cheltenham he would have to go extremely close. Claimantakinforgan surprised me how powerfully he ran on in the Cheltenham bumper and even his two and a half lengths behind Black Ops at Doncaster when giving 7lb to the winner on that occasion.

He meets Black Ops on far better terms this time around and really should be using that advantage at the weights. Black Ops was a very expensive purchase and will have to give weight back to the selection here.

If the Cap Fits represents Harry Fry, the unbeaten five year old recorded two good wins at Plumpton and Taunton and still looks on the upgrade, he has to be feared if handling the course.

Claimantakinforgan : 2pt Win @ 7/2 (BOG)