Can Native River win Gold Cup and Grand National this year?

Racing Online - Horse Racing News - United Kingdom Horse Racing News - Can Native River win Gold Cup and Grand National this year?
Native River horse racing news

Native River will bring good form to the after a classy victory at Newbury over the weekend. If the horse wins the in March, it could go on to an historic double at in April.

The Cheltenham Gold Cup and are the two biggest steeplechases of the season. Golden Miller is the only horse to win both races in the same year, way back in 1934. L'Escargot is the last horse to complete the career double, winning the National in 1975 after winning the Gold Cup in 1970 and 1971. Bovada quote Native River at +1000 for the Gold Cup and +1600 for the National.

No online bookmaker would take the double at those odds combined. This is an example of what is known as a related contingency. If Native River wins the Gold Cup his odds will be slashed for the Grand National. At the current odds the double is in theory +18600, but you will be lucky to get +6600 because the odds are adjusted downwards.

The Gold Cup/Grand National double in the same year is a once-in-history outcome because the races are so different. The Gold Cup is a conditions race over three miles, two-and-a-half furlongs. is an undulating track with an uphill finish. Horses aged five carry 11-08 while horses aged six and older carry 11-10 and there is a seven-pound allowance for mares.

The Grand National is run over two circuits of the flat Aintree track and the race distance is four miles, three-and-a-half furlongs. Only horses aged seven and older are eligible. The National is a handicap and the maximum weight is 11-10. Horses carry different weights, allocated by the handicapper. The better horses carry more weight to create a level playing field.

The 2020 Grand National weights will be announced on . The weights have been revealed in famous venues in London in the past, but St Georges Hall in Liverpool stages the event for the second successive year. There are currently 112 entries, but only 40 horses can run in the race. The weights range is 10-00 to 11-10, but the inferior horses will be allocated less than 10-00.

The revelation of weights given to and Native River is hugely anticipated. Two historic potential outcomes are in the hands of the handicapper: a third National in three years for Tiger Roll and Native River winning the Gold Cup and National in the same year. The handicapper must assess Native River's prospects in the Gold Cup because if the horse wins the race for the second time in three years he could be a blot on the handicap in the National three weeks later.

The owners and the handicapper are in disagreement over Tiger Roll's weight. Connections want the weights compressed for the best horses, while the handicapper is duty-bound to give every runner a fair chance. There should be a compromise which suits both parties and Tiger Roll will probably be given a shot at sporting immortality. He might have to beat the potential Gold Cup winner along the way.

Native River is a top-class horse and a solid jumper. He looked at his best when he won the at on Saturday. The horse gave weight to the rest of the field and never looked like losing this prep-race for the Gold Cup. Native River has not finished outside the top four in the last three Gold Cups. The horse should be a factor, but there are potential progressive Gold Cup runners who might have too much speed at the business end of the race.

Native River relishes testing ground, but he could look vulnerable if it is good or soft on Gold Cup day. As such, the Grand National is the more realistic target. Even if Native River does not win the Gold Cup, he could become the second horse in the last 50 years to win a Gold Cup and Grand National at any stage in his career.

Leave A Comment