Commentators being booked for Grand National duty would be well advised to practise their pronunciation of Kruzhlinin. The chestnut has an excellent chance of getting involved when the great race is run on 9 April and odds of 33-1 look the best value on offer, following publication of the weights on Tuesday.
With 10st 7lb to shoulder, he may very well cap the finest season in the career of Richard Johnson, who is finally on his way to being champion jump jockey. Johnson’s wait for a Grand National winner has been even longer than the one endured by AP McCoy but his 19 fruitless attempts around Aintree have produced a couple of second places and there is no doubt that his experience and talent will be an asset to whichever horse he partners this time.
That could easily be Kruzhlinin, described by Johnson as “the ideal Grand National type” after they teamed up for the first time to win at Kempton last month. “He was a little awkward at the first, but thereafter he was just about foot perfect,” the jockey said. “He was both nimble and brave, which is exactly what you want for Aintree.”
Two years ago, at the age of seven and then trained by Donald McCain, Kruzhlinin had a crack at the National and got round to be a distant 10th. He was, at the time, younger than any winner of the race since 1940, so there is force to Johnson’s belief that Kruzhlinin will be stronger this spring.
More importantly, he was out of form at that stage but now appears to have been revived by a move to the stable of Philip Hobbs and his Kempton effort looks like a career best. His weakness for jumping left that day would be less of an issue at Aintree.
Paul and Clare Rooney, his owners, have another fine chance in the race with The Last Samuri, who also put up a career best when last seen. Like Kruzhlinin, he appears a tough stayer with more to offer and both will have less than 11 stone to carry as things stand. The Last Samuri is also 33-1.
JP McManus owns a couple of interesting 40-1 shots in Gallant Oscar and Cause Of Causes. The latter stayed on well from too far back to be eighth last year, the race in which McManus’s main hopes were with Shutthefrontdoor, McCoy’s final Grand National ride. Surprisingly, Cause Of Causes now has a British rating 4lb below the one he had when he won at last year’s Festival, albeit that was in a non-handicap in which the placed horses had much lower ratings.
It is tempting to go with The Druids Nephew, who seemed on his way to winning last year’s National before suffering an odd and unnecessary looking late fall. He is 25-1 now but will surely be shorter on the day as his frustrated backers pile in again and, although higher in the weights this time, his burden is bearable. But his stable is not in quite the same vein of form so far this season and his best chance may have gone. That might also be said of Houblon Des Obeaux, who has been raised a stone for winning what turned out to be a weak contest on Saturday.
While it is fairly common for the previous National winner to head the betting next year, there has been no repeat winner since Red Rum and Many Clouds looks the worst value on offer at odds of just 12-1, which would be short enough on the day. Nothing came from the back to catch him last year but he did no more than stay on dourly and it will be a sensational achievement if he can do the double despite an even higher handicap rating, requiring him to give weight even to horses like Don Poli and Silviniaco Conti.
A case can be made for the 50-1 shot Living Next Door, who still looks fairly weighted despite winning a valuable Christmas handicap in Ireland last winter.
