Warwickshire trainer Dan Skelton targets Grand National Trial glory at Haydock
A field of 11 will head to post at Haydock on Saturday afternoon for the Grand National Trial Handicap at 3.15 - with plenty on the line for those who line up, including for Warwickshire trainer Dan Skelton.
Not only is the race worth £100,000 itself, it is also part of an initiative from bookers William Hill that is offering a £500,000 bonus for any horse that can win a selected Trial race - which Haydock is part of - and then go on to win the Grand National itself at Aintree in April.
Read below for a full preview of the Grand National trial at Haydock this weekend courtesy of the experts at https://www.grandnational.org.uk/
The Dan Skelton-trained Deafening Silence will likely head off as favourite on Saturday at Haydock, having finished third in the Welsh Grand National at the back end of last year behind Haiti Couleurs, who looks set to head to the Cheltenham Gold Cup next month. Skelton, leader of the British Trainers’ Championship, has long-targeted this race for Deafening Silence, who does have an entry for the National itself in April.
Myretown for the Lucinda Ruseell and Richard Scudamore team is the likely big danger to Deafening Silence, a winner of the Ultima at the Cheltenham Festival last year but has blundered twice over fences since, firstly in the Coral Gold Cup at Newbury and then in the Peter Marsh at this tack last month so if his jumping can hold up, is well in with a chance.
Holokea looks a progressive type for the Micky Bowen team, a winner at Ffos Las in October and has been on a solid run of form having finished runner-up in three starts since, while previous course winner Top Of The Bill can’t be ruled out despite carrying the most weight of the field this weekend for the Nigel and Willy Twiston-Davies team.
Monbeg Genius has long been touted as a Grand National contender and was fifth in the Welsh National at Chepstow so his claims are certainly solid at Haydock with a view to heading to Aintree in April, while Peter Marsh runner-up Richmond Lake arrives in decent form too though others are preferred to the Donal McCain-trained ten-year-old.
Git Maker was placed in the Scottish Grand National in the Spring of 2024 but has struggled since then, pulled up in the Welsh National last time out so has a fair ways to improve to have a chance at Haydock, as Grande Geste, pulled up at Doncaster last time out though was a winner of the Tommy Whittle at Haydock prior to that blow up.
The field is rounded out by Rivers Corner, who might be an each-way shout here despite being 9lb higher in the weights off the back of winning at Wincanton last month, Neo King who was second in the Southern National in November but is another battling a 9lb weight rise and Grand Albert, who will need a career best after a laboured fifth in the Tommy Whittle at this track.