I am astounded to see the price of VIEUX LION ROUGE at Aintree tomorrow given he has already won the race twice. I saw him in the paddock at Chepstow on his season debut and I thought he looked a picture and certainly as good as he ever has done. The good ground would have been against him that day but the soft groun on offer on Merseyside tomorrow should certainly be to his liking and I’m certain this has been the plan so expect him to be tuned up to the max.
My best bet of the weekend looks to be MIDNIGHT RIVER in the finale at Aintree tomorrow. Dan Skelton‘s horse is an interesting runner in this competitive handicap hurdle as he reverts to the smaller obstacles after a poor round of jumping on chase debut. It might be a confidence booster but at the same time I believe he is a lot better than his mark of 138. It’s worth remembering he has some top novice form in the book and was travelling just as well as Bravemansgame when falling in the Sefton Novices Hurdle in April. If he is anywhere near that form then he must have a serious chance tomorrow despite a big weight.
The final tip of the weekend is BENSON who deserves to win a nice race after a string of fine efforts. Despite pulling like a train last time at Cheltenham he managed to travel into the straight with a serious chance but faded up the hill over 2m 5f. He drops back to 2m here and the stiff finish will really suit given his effort over further last time. He also races off a much lower weight which again should aid his chance and given his form I think he is a really solid play in an open race.
Aintree 2.40 – Vieux Lion Rouge
Aintree 3.15 – Midnight River
Sandown 3.35 – Benson
