2008 Pundits Tips
Pundits always love to give their two pence worth but who got it right in 2008 and should you listen to them for the 2009 Aintree Grand National?? Let's start by taking a look at the Aintree Grand National winners from 2008...1st - Comply or Die
2nd - King John's Castle
3rd - Snowy Morning
4th - Slim Pickings
Here at Grand-National.me.uk we take pride in researching and analyzing the horses for months leading up to the big race and, with that in mind, here are the four horses we backed and what we had to say about each of them at the time...
King Johns Castle is looking very much a great each-way bet. His last six races have produced four second place finishes so it's well worth sticking a fiver on this horse each way, especially as he's currently at 20/1, down from 40/1, on Tote Sport.
Upside: He is Irish, owned by JP McManus and is going to be ridden by Paul Carberry. He is nine years old and has finished well while carrying a lot of weight. If he can finish 2nd with 11-12 on his back then he'll be flying it with the 10-11 he's been given for the national.
Downside: The furthest he's ever run is 24 furlongs which is only about 66% of the distance of the Grand national course at Aintree. Does he have the stamina required to go the full distance in a heavier packed field of 40 horses? At 16/1 an each way bet of £5 is probably worth it to find out!
Upside: He is Irish, trained by the great Tom Taffe, 9 years old and got a decent jockey riding him in the race. Although his weight for the national is on the high side, he generally runs carrying more so this is quite light for him which could be an advantage. He also came in third last year so he knows the course but can he win it this year?
Downside: He's a little on the heavy side at 11-03 which is really hitting the upper limit for this race. His win rate isn't as high as some of the other horses and his last few runs haven't been spectacular as his form indicates.
Upside: He is Irish, owned by N Elliott, he's nine years old and will be carrying 11 stone for the race. He's also one of only a few horses to have really run, finished and been placed in a previous Grand National.
Downside: He has run in Aintree three times and only been placed once, which was last year when he came second to Silverbirch. Also, he's only run two races this year and neither of them were wins, in fact, he ended up 10/11 and 8/11. Maybe he'll reverse his fortunes and raise his game for the Grand National.
Downside: I struggle to find any, if I'm to be honest. On the day one or two of the other entrants may be better but all the indicators say stick a few quid on him each way. He's on form this year so it's definitely worth a punt.
So, as you can see from above, we successfully picked three out of the four placed horses - do you think the professional pundits were as "on the money" as we were?? Keep reading...
Who Did The Pundits Tip in 2008?
Racing Post Tips ~ 1 out of 4- Slim Pickings
- Simon
- Turko
- Madison Du Berlais
- Slim Pickings
- Simon
- Hedgehunter
- DArgent
- Cloudy Lane
- Slim Pickings
- Chelsea Harbour
- Bewley's Berry
- Cloudy Lane
- Comply or Die
- Hedgehunter
- Simon
- Slim Pickings
- Point Barrow
- King John's Castle
- Simon
- Cloudy Lane
- Mon Mome
- Philson Run
- Simon
- DArgent
- Mon Mome
- Slim Pickings
- Comply or Die
As you can see, Grand-National.me.uk had more winners than any of the professionals which is probably why we had so many very happy customers. Don't forget to come back for our tips for the Grand National 2009 when we hope to be as successful again!
