REST OF AINTREE:THE REAL Liverpool specialist won't be running over the big fences this afternoon. Instead Al Eile will be pursuing a record fourth victory in the Grade One John Smith's Aintree Hurdle.
Morley Street managed to win this race four times in the 1990s and John Queally’s star looks capable of emulating that champion despite this field being possibly the strongest he has ever faced here.
Two former Champion Hurdle winners – Hardy Eustace and Katchit – line up today alongside Celestial Halo who came up only just short against Punjabi at Cheltenham three weeks ago.
This longer two and a half mile trip should suit Celestial Halo ideally but the worry will be whether or not a hard race at the festival will count against him.
In contrast a tendon problem that threatened to rule out Al Eile for the entire season now looks like becoming a real advantage as he comes to his favourite stomping ground fresh and in form.
Al Eile has been beaten just once in four starts at Aintree and Queally said yesterday, “He is very perky in himself. He does seem to perk up here. Flat tracks like Aintree, Leopardstown and Haydock suit him.”
This will be Al Eile’s first jumps start since beating Osana by 10 lengths here last year but he warmed up with a noticeably impressive victory on the flat at Dundalk recently. That indicated a horse that might even be getting better.
“Last year he ran in the same race at Dundalk but finished down the field and though he finished quite well nobody noticed him,” Queally grinned yesterday.
Fiveforthree is something of a dark horse today despite being grey while good ground will suit another Irish hope, Jered.
However Al Eile can maintain his status as a standing dish around here.
The day’s other Grade One is the Maghull Novices Chase in which Made In Taipan flies the Irish flag. Going left-handed suits Tom Mullins’s horse ideally but he still faces a big task against Tatenen and especially Kalahari King.
The latter was only just beaten by Forpadydeplasterer in the Arkle at Cheltenham and should be better suited to this flat track and better ground.
Three Mirrors was clear of the remainder when chasing home Oedipe in the three-mile handicap chase last year.
He comes back for another crack having had a wind operation and also having run well at the Cheltenham festival where giving the impression he now needs three miles to be at his best.
Qozak could be weighted leniently in the conditional and amateur hurdle.
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