Phil Kirby relishing crack at Grand National with new recruit Blaklion

Phil Kirby relishing crack at Grand National with new recruit Blaklion

By Racing TV
Last Updated: Tue 5 Dec 2023
Phil Kirby has his sights firmly set on a crack at the Randox Health Grand National with Blaklion after confirming the 10-year-old will be switching to his North Yorkshire yard.
The 10-year-old has been trained by Nigel Twiston-Davies for each of his 30 outings under rules, posting landmark efforts when winning the 2016 RSA Chase at Cheltenham and the 2017 Becher Chase at Aintree.
Blaklion finished fourth in the 2017 Grand National, but he got no further than the first fence last year when he was brought down.
A return to Aintree is uppermost in North Yorkshire-based Kirby’s mind, and he will be sporting the colours of owner Darren Yates after a deal was agreed on Monday.
Kirby said: “He’s been bought by an existing owner, Darren Yates, who is trying to build a nice team to go to the nice races and have some good days racing – and obviously this horse is a great start.
“It’s very exciting to have a horse like him join the yard as the aim for us is to get the better horses and in turn go for the better races.
“The deal was only finalised this morning so I’ll be picking him up tonight or tomorrow.
“The main aim is definitely to run in the Grand National, but we’ll have to see where we go in between. Nigel Twiston-Davies knows the horse much better than me so I’m hoping he will give me a hand and tell me where he would have gone with him.
“We’re really looking forward to him joining the team.”
Blaklion is a general 50-1 shot for the National on April 6.
Copyright 2025 Racing TV - All Rights Reserved.
My Account
Home
Watch
Live
Replays
On Demand
Catch Up
Tv Schedule
RTV Play Schedule
Racecards
Racecards
Today's Runners
Non-Runners
Tommorow's Runners
Racing Calendar
Results
Tips
Racing TV Tipsters
Nap Of The Day
News
All
Latest
Highlights
Columnists
Most Viewed
Free Bets
Members
Benefits
Join Offers
RtvExtra
Club Days
Syndicate
Magazine
Rewards4Racing
Tracker
More
Racecourses
Profiles
Responsible Gambling
Racecourse Offers
Racing TV Syndicate
Casino Offers & Free Spins
RaceiQ
TV Authentication
Royal Ascot
Cheltenham Festival
Patch Time
DeviceID
Version
production-
Races
Tips
Watch
Results
Menu