Paul Townend on his Fairyhouse rides and the Grand National
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Ladbrokes ambassador Paul Townend previews his rides at Fairyhouse on Sunday and looks ahead to the Grand National
She has been running consistently well over fences. Her form ties in with Jeremys Flame. We meet her 3lbs better off this time than when she beat us at Thurles the last day.
I think it will be hard to reverse the form with her. Dolcita is in good form and will run a consistent race but we will be looking to capitalise on any mistakes Jeremys Flame makes to try and get the better of her.
He’s a very lightly-raced horse. His run in Thurles the last day off a break was very good. He didn’t get the clearest of runs down the straight and was coming home very well. I think he can only improve for that.
He is a horse we like very much and he works very well at home. If he can build on that run in Thurles, it’ll put him bang there and he will take all the beating.
We were beaten by Flame Bearer the last day in Naas. We are getting 6lbs off him on Sunday which should get us a bit closer. He’s a good horse in his own right, he will run his true race, and he is a course and distance winner.
Deploy The Getaway was disappointing in Naas the last day and Willie also runs Hawai Game who pulled up on his last run. My horse has it all to do to beat Flame Bearer.
On the Grand National we have four left in it; Burrows Saint, Agusta Gold, Brahma Bull, and Class Conti. I am not certain what I will ride in the race yet.
Burrows Saint ran very well in the race last year for a long time but wasn’t good enough. His form coming into the race isn’t super by any means. He took to the fences well last year though so maybe that will bring about a little bit of improvement on his last run at Fairyhouse.
I know it is only a week away, but that is a long time in racing terms. It is an exciting race to be a part of and I am looking forward to it, whatever I decide to ride. It’s the only race of the year that you can go out on any horse and have a good chance.
