Walsh withdraws Rince Ri from National

Ante-post gamble Rince Ri has been ruled out of the Martell Cognac Grand National at Aintree on Saturday.

Ante-post gamble Rince Ri has been ruled out of the Martell Cognac Grand National at Aintree on Saturday.

The Ted Walsh-trained 11-year-old had been as short as 12-1 for the big race with some firms.

"He worked poorly, he scoped badly and he doesn't run," Walsh said today.

Rince Ri had attracted a steady stream of support for the National since chasing home Florida Pearl in a Grade Three event at Fairyhouse in January.

He followed that with a fine second to Jair Du Cochet in the Pillar Chase at Cheltenham and was third to Florida Pearl in the Hennessy Cognac Gold Cup at Leopardstown on his last run.

Walsh won the National with the heavily-backed Papillon in the year 2000.

Ruby Walsh will now ride Paul Nicholls' Exit To Wave in Liverpool.

  • Join The Irish Times on WhatsApp and stay up to date

  • Sign up for push alerts to get the best breaking news, analysis and comment delivered directly to your phone

  • Listen to In The News podcast daily for a deep dive on the stories that matter