Grand National 2024 Day Two: Protektorat can win the Melling Chase on Ladies Day

Cheltenham Festival winner PROTEKTORAT can double up in the My Pension Melling Chase (GBB Race) (3.30pm) on day two of the 2024 Randox Grand National Festival at Aintree Racecourse.

With the battle for the trainers' championship raging Dan Skelton can strike a blow against his former boss and current title holder Paul Nicholls with Protektorat landing the big pot for the Grade One feature of the opening day at Aintree.

Skelton’s nine-year-old is a high-class chaser on his day and having reverted back to 2m4½f at Cheltenham in soft conditions, he returned to form to land a first win in almost 18 months. A winner over this course and distance as a novice in the Manifesto Novices’ Chase back in April 2021, he has won again at the track in the Grade Two Many Clouds Chase and also in the 2022 Betfair Chase at Haydock Park. Having been third and fifth in the Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup connections dropped him back in trip for three runs this year and following a second and third at Lingfield and Newbury, Protektorat scored superbly beating the reopposing Envoi Allen in the Ryanair by four lengths. Being back to form on a track, trip and going he has proven very effective on, Protektorat can triumph again ahead of some very smart rivals.

Nicky Henderson’s Jonbon steps up to 2m4f for the first time and if he can cut out some jumping errors should go close. Last year’s Pic D’Orhy – for the title-chasing Nicholls’ stable – should be in the mix again and the aforementioned Henry De Bromhead-trained Envoi Allen is another with the ability to win. But it may be that Protektorat can keep them all at bay and land another Aintree victory.

Grand National 2024 full list of runners, riders, favourites and odds

Grand National 2024 tips