Corach Rambler heads depleted Grand National challenge as only 31 of 85 entries are trained in Britain

Cheltenham Festival winner Corach Rambler is on course to lead a depleted British challenge for the Randox Grand National after featuring among just 31 home-based possibles from an initial entry of 85 which is dominated by horses trained in Ireland.

Three-time winning trainer Gordon Elliott is responsible for a remarkable 21 entries, while the Emmet Mullins-trained Noble Yeats is a best-priced 12-1 favourite to repeat his 2022 victory.

The winner of last year's Ultima Handicap Chase at the festival, Corach Rambler looks likely to head back to Cheltenham before tackling the National, for which he is a best-priced 20-1, making him the leading British-trained candidate alongside Welsh National and Classic Chase winner Iwilldoit.

The Lucinda Russell-trained nine-year-old has entries in both the Betfair Denman Chase at Newbury this Saturday and Betfred Grand National Trial at Haydock a week later.

But Russell’s partner and assistant Peter Scudamore said they favoured waiting for the National weights to be announced on February 21 before heading to Cheltenham.

"We’ve dithered over it but I think he has a fair mark of 146 and I don’t want it to go up or down," said Scudamore. "Lucinda and Derek [Fox, stable jockey] think the Haydock race is quite hard on them close to the National and the ground looks to be fast at Newbury so I think he’ll go to Cheltenham for the Ultima.

"He’s 6lb higher than last year and then from there he’d go to Aintree. You don’t win a National without thinking about it and when we won [in 2017] with One For Arthur, we had to get him up in the weights. Once we’d done that we left him. Corach Rambler has a realistic mark and we don’t want to mess it about really."

Noble Yeats (right) is no bigger than 12-1 to repeat his 2022 Randox Grand National success in AprilCredit: Shaun Botterill

Five of the first six home from last year could return to Aintree, with Any Second Now, Delta Work, Fiddlerontheroof and Longhouse Poet all featuring alongside Noble Yeats at the entry stage.

Irish trainers saddled 21 of the 40 runners in last season’s race and the disparity looks set to grow this season, with only 19 of the British entries rated on 142 or higher, the bottom mark in three of the last five Nationals. If the race were to come up as a classier renewal as in 2021, when a rating of 145 was required to get a run, that number would be just 14.

But Scudamore was philosophical when asked if British trainers needed to be more ambitious in entering horses for the National.

"The reason I want to go to Cheltenham, the reason I want to go to Aintree, is that I want to take on the best,” said Scudamore. “Willie Mullins is the best at the moment but it’s hard for me to criticise him because I was with Martin Pipe and we dominated.

"The world evolves. When I first started it was hard to win because it was Fred Winter and Fred Rimell, then Yorkshire won everything, then it swung to Martin.”

Scudamore added: "I don’t like the criticism, they’re the best horses running. I want to see the best against the best and at the moment the Irish have them and they deserve to be in the race.

"They’re better than us at the moment, we’ve got to pick our arses up and do something about it. With ‘Arthur’ everything went right and with Corach Rambler, I don’t know. But if you don’t plan for it you can be sure the Irish will."

Where have the British-trained horses gone?

The British-trained initial entry of 31 compares with 54 in 2022 and 62 in 2021.

And there are a few changes in habits which could explain the decline of entries from Britain, merely the shift in the balance of where the relevant part of the population is trained.

Many Clouds on his way to victory in the 2015 Grand National at Aintree for owner Trevor HemmingsCredit: John Grossick (racingpost.com/photos)

Two owners with horses trained in Britain that have historically targeted the National are largely absent from the home team sheet. The colours of the late Trevor Hemmings are represented by a sole entry, the Venetia Williams-trained Cloudy Glen.

And while JP McManus holds seven tickets at this stage, only Sporting John for the Philip Hobbs yard is trained in Britain. The change of circumstances for those two owners mean it is unsurprising that trainer Jonjo O’Neill will be without a runner for only the second time since 2003.

And several trainers traditionally strong in the staying chaser department have only one entry apiece:

David Pipe (Remastered) has had multiple runners six times since 2010.
Paul Nicholls (Threeunderthrufive) has had multiple runners eight times since 2010.
Nigel Twiston-Davies (Fantastikas) has had multiple runners seven times since 2010.

2023 Grand National betting

Coral: 10 Noble Yeats, 16 Longhouse Poet, Remastered, Stattler, 20 Any Second Now, Ashtown Lad, Corach Rambler, Delta Work, Gaillard Du Mesnil, Iwilldoit, Le Milos, 25 bar

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