With Fairyhouse following Cheltenham so quickly and the flat season slowly cranking into gear, yet another festival could be in danger of being swamped. Aintree's Grand National meeting, however, could never be described as just another festival.
The three-day fixture gets underway this afternoon with a suitable quality appetiser for the world's most famous steeplechase on Saturday.
A total of 10 Irish-trained horses take their chance in the seven races with Christy Roche, a winner with Khayrawani last year, running three.
The Supreme Novice runner-up Joe Mac goes in the opener, the Triumph third Afarad attempts to beat Hors La Loi III in the Glenlivet and Grimes makes his chasing debut in the Maghull Chase. However, those and the other Irish horses will be doing well to pick up a race today.
The home team have the featured £65,000 Martell Cup to themselves with David Nicholson's Gold Cup runner-up Go Ballistic sure to be fancied. However, in the circumstances Nicholson's other runner, Escartefigue, looks a better option.
The blinkers which caused Escartefigue to race too freely in the Gold Cup are off and traditionally this is the time of year when the French-bred comes into his own. A Punchestown victory two years ago indicated that and a success in this race last season seemed to prove it.
The forecast soft ground is also more in his favour than Go Ballistic whose previous best form before the Gold Cup was mainly on decent going. The Mildmay Of Flete winner Majadou has to improve to figure in this company and so does the Cathcart fifth Dr Leunt.
Escartefigue doesn't tend to do things spectacularly but while it may be a struggle, expect him to score.
Joe Mac will probably appreciate the flat, sharp Aintree track but he does have to give weight away in the Barton & Guestier Novices Hurdle and he did have quite a hard race chasing Hors La Loi III home at Cheltenham.
In the circumstances then Grecian Dart and Lord Lamb look better options. The latter had a nice pipe-opener on the flat at Doncaster recently and ran a sequence earlier in the season. Grecian Dart has also done well this year and has been prepared for this contest all season. A winner at Windsor and Kempton, the form of the latter race has been boosted since and with the Nicky Henderson yard in its present form, Grecian Dart is slightly preferred.
The aforementioned Hors La Loi III takes on his fellow four year olds in the Glenlivet and while his reaction to his Cheltenham efforts cannot be gauged until he runs, on form he is impossible to oppose despite a three-pronged Irish attack.
Spectacle wise however, the day's highlight will be in the Foxhunters Chase over the National fences. Elegant Lord proved his ability over these fences when second to Cavalero last year and Philip Fenton is sure to give him an effective ride. However, he didn't quite get home in the race 12 months ago and maybe a better each-way option is Alan Dempsey's mount Mely Moss who is returning from a 784 day absence but did have some decent form.
Selections: 2.00 - Grecian Dart; 2.35 - Escartefigue (nap); 3.10 - Tresor De Mai; 3.45 - Mely Moss; 4.20 - Hors La Loi III; 4.50 - Forest Tribe; 5.20 - Teaatral.
