63 stand their ground in the Grand National Gordon Elliott's Tiger Roll and the Willie Mullins-trained Total Recall feature in a very strong Irish raiding party for Saturday's Randox Health Grand National at Aintree Raz De Maree, Baie Des Iles and Anibale Fly are also among the 63 left in, but the Mullins-trained trio of Bellshill, Acapella Bourgeois and Rathvinden have been taken out. A maximum of 40 horses will line up in the four-and-a-quarter-mile feature, with Minella Rocco remaining at the head of the weights. Nigel Twiston-Davies' Double Ross currently occupies the final slot in the race and if there are any withdrawals from the final 40 between declaration time on Thursday and 1pm on Friday, one of four reserves will step up in the order they are selected. Twiston-Davies also has leading hope Blaklion in the mix, while one who will be lining up for a third attempt is Vieux Lion Rouge, having finished seventh and sixth in the last two renewals. "He usually lights up for the big occasion," trainer David Pipe told At The Races. "He's run well in the last two Nationals and he won't mind what the ground is. It's just the first half of the season hasn't really gone to plan. "We've beaten Blaklion and he's beaten us, but because of the first half of the season, we've come down a few pounds in the weights." Others of note to stand their ground include last year's fifth Gas Line Boy and Seeyouatmidnight, who will now run in the colours of David and Patricia Thompson, successful with Party Politics in 1992.
