Gordon Elliot, trainer of Grand National icon Tiger Roll, has confirmed that “the plan” is for Tiger Roll to return to Aintree for the 2021 Grand National. Tiger Roll, who was bidding to become the first horse to win a hat-trick of successive Grand Nationals in 2020 prior to its postponement, will have one final chance to achieve sporting immortality according to his connections.
Elliot was recently interviewed by The Jockey Club and he revealed in the video that Tiger Roll was “moving great” and “looks brilliant”, sparking hopes that he is in good shape to make a bold bid in April 2021. Racing journalist Ed Chamberlain asked Elliot whether he could officially confirm Tiger Roll's entry into the 2021 Grand National and he said that it was “100%” the target. Chamberlain described the revelation as “fantastic news” for horse racing and indeed the entire sporting world, which needs a pick-me-up in these uncertain times.
Jockey Club Racecourses delighted at the prospect of Tiger Roll's bid for Grand National history
The confirmation from Tiger Roll's connections has also excited the North West division of Jockey Club Racecourses, with its regional director Dickon White confirming the group's “delight” at the news and the chance to see this “special horse” at Aintree once again. White spoke of the way Tiger Roll had “captured the imagination” of “non-racing fans” as well as racing fanatics across the UK.
Legendary Irish jockey Davy Russell has been the jockey on Tiger Roll for both of his previous Grand National successes and the 41-year-old said earlier this year that he would “love a crack” at the 2021 race. His role in Tiger Roll's rise to stardom should not be underestimated. National Hunt jockeys like Russell would surely make good online poker players, given their razor-sharp decision making that could translate to the online poker tables.
A major attribute in online poker betting – in either Texas Holdem or Omaha Hi-Lo – is knowing when to be the aggressor and Russell has demonstrated on multiple occasions with Tiger Roll that he knows exactly when to turn up the heat on his rivals around Aintree. Russell's approach is reminiscent of what Texas Holdem players adopt when they play poker online in the form of counterstrategies that ring-fence the aggressive early leaders and allow them to run out of steam.
Russell, who also has a Cheltenham Gold Cup victory to his name alongside a brace of Grand National wins, will be hoping to be fully fit in time for April 2021. The Youghal-born jockey sustained fractured C6 vertebrae and neck injury two weeks ago in the Munster National at Limerick. Dr Jennifer Pugh, senior medical officer at the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board (IHRB) confirmed Russell would be sidelined “for a number of weeks”. If Russell was to fail to recover in time for Aintree for one reason or another, Gordon Elliot would almost certainly turn to Keith Donoghue to take the reins of Tiger Roll instead.
Tiger Roll's most likely rivals in the 2021 Grand National
Following Elliot's confirmation that Tiger Roll is being primed for appearances at Cheltenham Festival and the Grand National in 2021, it's a good idea to have half-an-eye on the likely competitors for Tiger Roll's Aintree crown next year.
If you want a horse that's fully capable of jumping all of Aintree's fences, look no further than Tom Lacey's Kimberlite Candy. It has developed into a top-performing stayer, having been steeplechasing for the last three years. A good marker for Kimberlite Candy's potential should be its second-place finish in the Becher Chase and has won elsewhere at distances of three mile five furlongs and further, with stamina seemingly not an issue here.
Burrows Saint is another that will almost certainly be there or thereabouts with a fair crack. Trained by Willie Mullins, Burrows Saint bagged the Irish Grand National in 2019, so is clearly a very good sort for prevailing around Aintree. By the time of the 2021 National, Burrows Saint will be eight years old, which should stand him in good stead to compete with Tiger Roll and co.
Another contender worth talking about is David Cottin's Easysland. The six-year-old thwarted Tiger Roll in his tracks at the 2020 Cheltenham Festival. Tiger Roll was expected to win the Glenfarclas Chase at a canter, but Easysland went toe-to-toe with him and eventually powered clear to take a surprise victory. It will have been little surprise to some punters given that Easysland has won six of his last seven chases.
The Conditional is another intriguing prospect, trained by David Bridgwater. The eight-year-old prevailed around Cheltenham to take the 2020 Ultima Handicap Chase, which raised eyebrows among the industry, who immediately suggested he had the tools to make a bold bid at Aintree. Old-stager Native River is another that could never be discounted at the Grand National. Having been placed or won 17 of his previous 18 appearances in chases, Colin Tizzard's ten-year-old could be the perfect age to strike and break the hearts of the nation in April.
How will Tiger Roll stack up against the rest of the field?
It's important to be realistic about Tiger Roll's prospects of becoming the first horse to win three successive Grand Nationals. If he does go on to achieve the feat, it would arguably become the biggest achievement in the history of British sport. Tiger Roll will almost certainly start the 2021 Grand National at top weight, which will prove to be a major leveller this time around. One look at the 2020 Virtual Grand National, with Tiger Roll racing at top weight, revealed that he just didn't quite have the power or stamina to stay on, eventually finishing in fourth.
Tiger Roll made a solid appearance on the flat at Navan, finishing sixth earlier in October, having only raced once out of stalls in the past. How he performs in the Grade One race at Down Royal will provide a significant insight into his condition and just how much he has left in the tank.
