Racing tips: Five Star Getaway deserves a second chance over the National fences

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Friday was a bloodbath for my selections who all ran fairly rubbish races. Exeter did remove their fences for a race, which didn't help Ree Okka, but they were put back in for Some Detail's race, where he was given too much to do after being held up, and he missed the places by a head. Darebin was in the midst of running a good race, but made a mistake when looking tired.

Saturday's racing looks good for a spectator but from a betting point of view it doesn't really stand out to me. I've only gone for two selections, there were a few who could've been a selection but I persuaded myself not to as I wasn't confident enough.

Wetherby 1:23

I would be a supporter of Indy Five in this contest. He is a great veteran who runs with his heart on his sleeve, often from the front and at the age of 12, he is still running mighty races. I really do rate the form of his recent fourth at Cheltenham but that looked like a tough race and for a 12yo to run just 20 days later in a totally different race scenario where he now carries close to top weight, I think he has to be taken on.

My money will be going on GRANGE RANGER who is also an old horse but is lightly raced in comparison. This 10yo has only raced 15x over rules, including 11x as a chaser which has yielded 2 wins and 3 runner-up runs. I rate the form line of his recent win over today's C&D where he won on the back of a 308-day absence. The runner-up ran a great race at Exeter yesterday for a trainer who is in good form and looks like a horse who could land a win in the not-so-distant future. For a horse who was off the track for so long I was surprised by how well he travelled into the race. He has gone up 4 lbs for that run but is effectively running off the same handicap mark as last race as Jack Hogan replaces Emma Smith-Chaston who also claims 7 lbs.

I wouldn't go crazy on your stakes as he isn't the most consistent performer but I do think he has every chance in this if repeating the run of last time out.

Aintree 2:05

The Becher chase is one of the best races of the jumps season as they go over the National fences for one of a few occasions throughout the season. Watching horses jump these fences is a great spectacle, but from a betting standpoint, you need a horse who is capable of making it around and probably being a fair few pounds well-handicapped.

I tipped up FIVE STAR GETAWAY for a race over these fences in April where he was given a strange ride and was never really put into the race. He was quietly well-fancied for that race that day, so it was weird to see that type of ride. I think it's of major interest that they come back to this venue over these fences for another crack at them. Many owners/trainers would avoid that, but the fact that Christian brings him to Aintree again suggests they really believe he is suited to this type of fence. What's different this time is that they are running him over 3m 2f instead of 2m 5f, he has never run over this far before but has won nicely over 3m off a 2lb lower mark where he kept on well.

You're gonna need a fair amount of luck in running for a race like this unless you're on a horse that runs from the front. But, I'm a big fan of Christian Williams and I'll be giving his lad another chance. A couple of other horses I do think could run well at prices are Minella Bobo and Didero Vallis.

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