Dual Scottish Grand National winner Vicente declared for hat-trick bid at Ayr
A full field of 30 have declared for Saturday's Scottish Grand National at Ayr, including Vicente, unfortunate Aintree absentee Vintage Clouds and Fagan, who represents Gordon Elliott in his bid to win all three Grand Nationals this spring.
VICENTE is bidding to win his third consecutive Scottish Grand National at Ayr on Saturday.
Paul Nicholls' nine-year-old, owned by Trevor Hemmings, would join an elite list of horses to three Scottish Nationals and become only the second horse to win the almost four-mile contest three years in a row.
Owner Hemmings will also be representing by Sue Smith's Vintage Clouds, who agonisingly missed the cut by one for the Grand National at Aintree last weekend.
Gordon Elliott has won both the Irish and Aintree Grand Nationals narrowly with General Principle and Tiger Roll and goes to complete his own hat-trick of big National victories with Fagan.
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Folsom Blue, unlucky in the Irish National on Easter Monday, was a notable absentee from the Elliott yard, with the drying ground not in his favour.
Nicky Henderson, who famously has never won a Grand National in any country, runs both top weight Gold Present and Beware The Bear.
Templegate's TV tips
1.50 Newmarket - Dragons Tail: 'His trainer is in great form so fitness shouldn’t be a problem'
2.25 Newmarket - Suyra: 'Beautifully bred, his dad is Frankel and his mum Sariska won the Oaks'
2.40 Cheltenham - Aunty Ann: 'She has clearly been waiting for the sun to shine and now she can make hay'
3.00 Newmarket - Magical Memory: 'Won this race two years ago and he’s got a great record in Group 3 races'
3.35 Newmarket - Roaring Lion: 'Moved like a top-class horse when narrowly denied in the Group 1 Racing Post Trophy'
Nigel Twiston-Davies runs the novice Ballyoptic and last year's placed horses Cogry and Benbens, while Colin Tizzard sends Sizing Codelco, Sizing Tennessee and West Approach.
Jamie Snowden's Fact Of The Matter gets in off bottom weight, with Racing Europe and Portrait King the two reserves.