CHARACTER BUILDING GRAND NATIONAL BETTING TIPS

One of the top contenders for the 2009 Aintree Grand National is a 9 year-old Irish number named Character Building. Currently listed in the ante-post markets in the region of 15/1, you'll find plenty of punters believe that he is one of the definite favourites for the big race and could very well pull a surprise on the outright favourite My Will. But what does Character Building bring to the table and why is he commanding such a competitive ante-post price? The answer is likely the fact that he triumphed in the Kim Muir Handicap Chase at Cheltenham against a very large field (24, in fact). It was a challenging race and Character Building by no means walked away with it, but how often does a horse walk away with the Grand National Championship? His ability to fight off challengers in the final stretch is one of his biggest selling features and having a Cheltenham win under the belt heading into Grand National is always going to set off a flurry of ante-post bets. CHARACTER BUILDING BETTING TIPSPrior to the Cheltenham victory, his most recent victory was at Towcester in early November where he triumphed in the Burdens Handicap Hurdle with Dougie Costello on top. He also finished second to another Grand National favourite Butler's Cabin at the National Hunt Chase during the 2007 Cheltenham Festival. He also finished 3rd to Denman at the Hennessy Gold Cup at Newbury in late 07 as well. He also lost by a considerable margin at the Blue Square Gold Cup Chase where Rambling Minster (another Grand National favourite) bested a field of 16. In all honesty I think a lot depends on the rider here and, having worked with A P McCoy once in the past, we could possibly see him on top again here. Tony McCoy and Character Building would make an excellent partnership, but I would wait before placing any substantial amounts of money on Character Building.