JJ Slevin eyeing big National double and believes his Aintree mount has 'a live chance'
JJ Slevin, fresh from a thrilling success in Monday's Irish Grand National, is relishing the prospect of riding Panda Boy at Aintree as a stunning National double becomes a possibility, while he is also keen to right a wrong on Fastorslow after they parted company in last month's Cheltenham Gold Cup.
Slevin came in for the injured Daryl Jacob and expertly steered the Tom Gibney-trained Intense Raffles to a hugely popular victory in the €500,000 Irish National at Fairyhouse, which gave jockey and trainer their second triumph in Ireland's richest jumps race.
"It's just a fantastic race to win," said Slevin. "Tom told me what he'd like me to do but, at the same time, he more or less left it up to me which was ideal. He gave me plenty of confidence as he said he thought he'd win. I chatted to Daryl beforehand and he was also very sweet on him.
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