Mammoth trip little problem to Viking Blond in Welsh National

Viking Blond ticks a lot of boxes to win the Welsh National and despite still being a relative novice over the larger obstacles, he can still land the spoils at Chepstow.

Stamina is the main attribute that the horse has in abundance and this could be pivotal, as the 3m5f showpiece tends to take a lot of getting.

This will be especially true if there is any substantial rain on the Welsh border in the coming days, meaning that conditions on the day will be on the soft side of good.

Therefore, the further the race and heavier the conditions, the more chance the horse effectively has and 10/1 currently looks solid each-way value.

Also in favour of Viking Blond is that the Welsh National is the type of race that is typically thrived in by Nigel Twiston-Davies and the trainer has aimed at the horse for Chepstow for much of the season.

Course form can also be a big factor in the outcome, with 14 of the last 18 Welsh National winners having previously entered the Chepstow winners’ enclosure.

Viking Blond has visited Chepstow three times in the past, winning on two of these occasions and finishing second on the other, showing that he has a fondness for the course and its obstacles.

However, perhaps the biggest factor in favour of Viking Blond is that he is French bred.

French-bred runners have filled 13 of the 24 places in the Welsh National in the past six years, despite making up just over a quarter of the participants in this period.

Younger horses also tend to dominate, so the fact Viking Blond is a six-year-old is a positive statistically, alongside the fact that he arrives at Chepstow with a run under his belt inside the last month.