Aintree Day 1 Tips for Thursday 13th April 2023

Day 1 of the 2023 Aintree Festival sees Constitution Hill strut his stuff once again but elsewhere, there is competitive action including the Betfair Bowl at 2.25pm.

We have asked OB to run through all seven races and pick his Aintree day 1 tips as we look to get some pennies in the bank ahead of the Grand National on Saturday.

Read his thoughts for each race below and the best betting tips for Thursday at Aintree.

 

1.45pm – Manifesto Novices Chase

A tricky little contest here with only 5 runners and a race that will heavily rely on the state of the ground come the off. Banbridge skipped Cheltenham on the morning of his expected participation in the Turners due to the soft ground in hope he would get better ground here. With heavy spells of rain forecasted before the off Im not sure he will get the good ground he ideally wants in this. Stage Star surprised many when winning that Turners Novices chase at Cheltenham and we must respect him more now. However, I am willing to take him on again as I believe that win at Cheltenham would have taken a lot out of him and I’m not sold on the form of that race either.

I wouldn’t have a strong opinion on the winner of this race with question marks over the top 2 but my tentative selection would be for Saint Roi (7/2 with bet365). 3^rd and beaten 12 lengths by El Fabiolo in the Arkle, he still has doubts on his G1 ability but id be willing to take a risk on him on which will be his first career start over 2 ½ miles.

Back Saint Roi at 7/2 to win with bet365’s sign-up offer.

 

2.20pm – Juvenile Hurdle

The main thing to consider in the juvenile division this season is that the UK form is pretty poor and the Irish 4-year-olds are head and shoulders above them. So I’m not looking past the 3 Irish horses in this and more specifically the 2 at the top end of the market. This is another race that is ground dependent and takes into account a horse who raced at Cheltenham or a horse or bypassed it and arrives fresh.

Zenta is the right favourite and the one they have to beat following her fine effort in finishing 3^rd in the Triumph Hurdle, only beaten 2 ½ lengths by Lossiemouth on which was only her 2^nd start for Willie Mullins.

Nusret offers good competition and is a great EW price at current odds. Winner of the G1 Adonis hurdle in February, he was held back for this with the hope of better ground and avoiding the best of the Irish. He will get a weaker field here but the ground (like stable mate Banbridge) may go against him. He would be a better horse on better ground and any significant rain would harm his chances of beating the fav.

If Nusret was certain to get good ground I think he’s the selection but with some uncertainty and the fact that Zenta (7/4 with bet365) gets her 7lb allowance, I think she’s going to be hard to beat.

Back Zenta at 7/4 to win with Bet365.

 

2.55pm – Aintree Bowl

For me, this looks like being the race of the week and is packed with star quality. Only a 6-runner race but 5 of which have Grade 1 wins to their name. All 5 of those horses ran at Cheltenham (to a mix of results) without winning and all come here with a sense of something to prove.

Bravemansgame and Conflated bring the strongest form to the table having been 2^nd & 3^rd respectively in the Gold Cup whereas A Plus Tard was pulled up 3 from the finish and Ahoy Senor fell when going well 6 out. Shishkin ran in the Ryanair and was 2^nd but was never travelling like his Ascot run the time before. His chance was blown when clattering 3 out and although he recovered, it wasn’t enough to get past Envoi Allen.

It really wouldn’t surprise me if any of the top 5 were to win and with question marks made for all runners, I would advise having a couple of win-only bets if you feel you can get a decent price on 1 of the top 5. Ahoy Senor and Conflated would be the 2 I would choose from and preference goes to Ahoy Senor (11/2 with Coral) who has won at this meeting for the last 2 years. If the Gold Cup fall doesn’t have a lasting effect on him I believe he will run his race here again and be difficult to beat. I hope he gets into the rhythm he was in during the Gold Cup and if he does then he’s the one for me.

Back Ahoy Senor at 11/2 to win with Coral.

 

3.30pm – Aintree Hurdle

Just like at Cheltenham, it’s time to sit back and enjoy the superstar that is Constitution Hill. Absolutely no need to have a bet in this race.

 

4.05pm – Foxhunters Chase

A 28 runner field over the national fences for amateur riders here but I can’t look past the favourite Winged Leader (7/2 with William Hill). He is probably short enough for a race like this but he’s the most likely winner and I can’t find anything that stands out that can beat him or put up a good EW performance.

Cheltenham was sidestepped this year in prep for this having been beaten on the line at last year’s festival by Billaway. He was 6 lengths clear going over the last there until he tired on the run-in. The drop-down in trip to 2m5 should be no worry and he should be strong at the line. Barry O’Neill is a top-class amateur to have on board and the horse/jockey have paired up multiple times throughout their careers and have a great connection.

Back Winged Leader at 7/2 to win with William Hill’s £30 sign-up offer.

 

4.40pm – Red Rum Handicap Chase

2m Handicap chases seem few and far between these days and as a result they are usually run at a blistering pace and I see this race having a similar pattern. 14 runners and a case could be made for almost every runner but I’m going to back last year’s winner The Last Day (11/1 with Sky Bet). 3 of the first 6 home last year return again but I’m happy to back my charge to repeat his success.

He won off 133 last year and having gone up 8lbs for that win, he is back down to 135 after 2 poor runs this season in which he was pulled up on his latest run at the Cheltenham Festival.

I would say the handicapper has been lenient and I believe this horse dropping back down the weights quickly gives him a chance again. An 11-year-old with little/no improvement to come, I hope he has one last big race in him on Thursday.

Back The Last Day at 11/1 EW with Sky bet paying 5 places.

 

5.15pm – Mares Bumper

Bumpers are never easy to bet on and I try and stay away from having a really strong opinion in them due to a lot of uncertainty in many of the horses. We simply don’t know enough about them. Jolie Coeur Allen fits that bill perfectly. She is making her debut for Willie Mullins after having 1 run in France in September as a 3-year-old. She could be anything and with the connections she has, she’s likely to have something about her.

My preference will be for what I have seen and I was hugely impressed with Seeyouinmydreams on her debut at Newbury where she won by 11 lengths. Paul Nicholls said that this was the plan for her ever since that win. She won’t be my strongest fancy of the day but I believe she could be very good and id be hopeful she would improve further from that first run and go well here.

Back Seeyouinmydreams at 7/2 to win with bet365.

 

Read More:

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Which Grand National favourite is the best to bet on?

 

Aintree Free Bet Offers

Some bookies will remove their free bet offers altogether ahead of the Grand National or offer a much less lucrative offer, so the recommendation from us would be to claim any of these offers ASAP before they are taken down.

As the Grand National free bets change, they will update on the list below automatically.

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