Grand National Festival Tips April 13

The opening day of Aintree's Grand National festival is headlined by the Aintree Bowl. This Grade One has been won by some of the best staying chasers the sport has ever produced and viewers look set for a fantastic renewal in 2023.

We've taken a look through the betting for the Aintree Bowl betting and picked out our best betting tips

*Odds taken on 10/4/23*

2023 Aintree Bowl Runners

The betting for this year's Bowl is incredibly tight. Shishkin leads the way, for now, but if support did come for any of the four horses sitting behind the market leader, then they could leapfrog the current favourite.

Shishkin clearly has tons of class and a massive engine. However, Henderson's star has now jumped poorly on three of his last four starts and three miles is a complete unknown. 

I backed Bravemansgame in the Gold Cup and I was delighted with his performance. Paul Nicholls' had his eight-year-old cherry ripe for that outing and there wasn't much talk of Aintree in the immediate aftermath. Bravemansgame came to the Mildmay on a bit of a whim last year and he ran terribly. That would worry me considerbly if Harry Cobden was to get jocked up.

Ahoy Senor won last year's Mildmay - his second Grade One triumph at this meeting. Lucinda Russell's stable star was jumping well before his tumble at the third-last in the Gold Cup. I don't like backing chasers on the back of falls, but I could make an exception for this talented but quirky horse.

Conflated has to be given a significant chance too, following his excellent third-place finish in the Gold Cup. Gordon Elliott's nine-year-old was touched off by Clan Des Obeaux in this race 12 months ago and he looks set to run another solid race.

2023 Aintree Bowl Tips

I've eventually come down on the side of A PLUS TARD. Form figures of PP for the season wouldn't point towards an imminent return to winning form, but Henry De Bromead's former Gold Cup winner has plenty going in his favour.

Before Cheltenham, De Bromhead was certain that the troubles that had plagued A Plus Tard earlier in the season were firmly behind him. Those claims seemed vindicated for three quarters of the Gold Cup, where Rachael Blackmore's mount jumped and travelled well at the rear of the field. 

The defending champion was just starting to work his way into contention when Ahoy Senor and Sounds Russian came down at the third-last. A Plus Tard was forced to hurdle both of the fallen horses, which scuppered his momentum completely and Blackmore pulled her mount up soon after jumping the penultimate flight.

Out of all of the leading contenders, A Plus Tard has had the lightest campaign. De Bromhead's star won his Gold Cup on decent ground and the track here at Aintree often favours horses with a dynamic turn-of-foot.