He is arguably Britain’s hottest jockey at the moment having partnered Buveur D’Air and Special Tiara to victory in the Champion Hurdle and Queen Mother Champion Chase respectively at last week’s Cheltenham Festival and Nigel Twiston-Davies has procured the services of Irish jockey Noel Fehily for Grand National hope Blaklion for the extended four and a quarter-mile contest at Aintree next month.
Fehily, far from a regular rider for Twiston-Davies, riding for the handler just 14 times in the last five years, he will partner the 2016 RSA Chase winner with the Naunton trainer without a jockey for the gelding prior to the Fehily announcement following the injuries sustained by William Twiston-Davies at the Cheltenham Festival.
The Kayf Tara gelding ran a cracker to finish second at Haydock in the Betfred Grand National Trial last month, beaten three and a quarter-lengths by David Pipe’s Vieux Lion Rouge.
Twiston-Davies’ eight-year-old was third to Native River in the Betfred Mildmay Novices’ Chase and is a general 16/1 shot for the Grand National at this year’s meeting.
Twiston-Davies has won the Grand National on two occasions, courtesy of Earth Summit in 1998 and Bindaree in 2002 and today said:
It’s sad that Willy will not be fit to ride Blaklion after last week’s fall at Cheltenham, as we really wanted to him to ride, and Sam looks sure to be riding for Paul [Nicholls], but in the circumstances I’m delighted to have Noel riding Blaklion.
He’s a jockey we all admire, and he had a great week at Cheltenham. When I put the idea to the owners they were very happy with it. He’s a great man to have on your side.
