Tiger Roll set for Grand National defence

Trainer Gordon Elliott has confirmed Tiger Roll will head to Aintree to bid for a second successive Grand National victory next month (Tiger Roll 5/1 – Randox Grand National win and each way NRNB).

Tiger Roll claimed a fourth Cheltenham Festival win last week when landing the Glenfarclas Chase, but afterwards owner Michael O’Leary of Gigginstown suggested a Grand National defence was in doubt.

However, Elliott says the plan is to head to Aintree with the nine-year-old on April 6.

“He’s a horse of a lifetime,” Elliott said. “He’s come out of Cheltenham very well and the plan is to go for the Aintree National.

“Obviously I’ll have to discuss it with Eddie and Michael [O’Leary] but he’s come out of Cheltenham very well so I can’t see any reason why he won’t be running there next.”

Elliott also stressed that he isn’t too worried about any extra weight Tiger Roll may have to carry this year.

He added: “I spoke to the English handicapper yesterday and he said he put him up 8lb for winning the cross-country, and he might have been easy on him giving him that, as he could have put him up 10lb or more. But, because it was the cross-country race, he only put him up 8lb.

“That’d only leave him 1lb wrong on last year and it looks like he’s a different horse this year than he was last year.”

If Tiger Roll does head to Aintree he will be bidding to become the first horse in 45 years to win back-to-back Grand Nationals, with Red Rum the last to achieve that feat.

Anibale Fly, runner-up in last week’s Cheltenham Gold Cup, came fourth in the Grand National last year and is 10/1 with Betfred ahead of the 2019 edition of the showpiece race, while Tea for Two is 40/1 and Splash of Ginge is 66/1.

Odds subject to change