The three-day Grand National meeting gets underway on Thursday afternoon and two-time Grand National winner Tiger Roll will be centre off attention when he does battle with eight rivals in the Betway Bowl.
Tiger Roll on the prowl on Day One of Grand National meeting
Two-time Grand National hero and five-time Cheltenham Festival winner Tiger Roll will be going all-out to add the Grade One Betway Bowl Chase to what is now a hugely impressive list of high-profile wins. The diminutive horse has now become very much a household name, however while he has become well-known for his Grand National exploits in recent years, owners Gigginstown Stud have decided to take a different approach this year and run him on Thursday at Aintree instead of the Irish National on Easter Monday or the Grand National on Saturday.
The Denise Foster-trained eleven-year-old had been somewhat out of form since his second Grand National win in 2019, however he put all of this firmly behind him when winning in extremely convincing fashion in the Cross Country Chase at the Cheltenham festival last month.
He will face stiff opposition in the Betway Bowl Chase in the form of Native River, winner of the 2018 Gold Cup at the Cheltenham festival, and Clan Des Obeaux, winner of the King George VI in 2018 and 2019. Other notable contenders in the race include Real Steel, Mister Fisher, Militarian, Clondaw Castle and Waiting Patiently.
Following Tiger Roll’s Cross Country win last month, Gigginstown racing manager Eddie O’Leary said:
“We’ve absolutely no regrets about taking him out of the National as his rating is just too high. We’re probably going to have to run him at a park track, we’re even considering the Betway Bowl at Aintree.
“He’ll probably go for the Bowl and unfortunately he’ll prove he’s not that (a 166-rated horse), unless he is and then he’ll prove us all completely wrong.”
