Grey Dawning starts title-chasing Dan Skelton's important three days at Aintree on Thursday with the Close Brothers Manifesto Novices' Chase.
The race for the leading trainer is heating up, with Skelton, the Alcester handler, currently leading his former mentor Paul Nicholls by a significant margin of around £30,000. However, perennial Irish champion Willie Mullins, despite being over £685,000 behind, is not one to be discounted.
Skelton knows the next three days on Merseyside might decide the title, but he's trying to stay grounded.
"There's a lot of water to go under that bridge, but having good chances at this meeting with the prize money is obviously paramount," he added.
Grey Dawning, one of Skelton's triumphant quartet at Cheltenham, notably turned the tables on Nicholls' Ginny's Destiny to claim victory in the Turners Novices' Chase, setting the stage for an exciting rematch.
Skelton hopes Grey Dawning's Cheltenham success will continue in the Randox Grand National Festival's first event.
He added: "Obviously, I'm excited. He proved at Cheltenham that two-and-a-half miles on this ground is fine. I wanted to travel three miles with him, but this ground made it simple. He's fit at home. There's no reason to suppose he's not in the same shape as at Cheltenham, but horses have attempted to do the two, and some have succeeded, and some have failed. I hope he's successful! I love him, so I have no reason to doubt him."
Nicholls is optimistic about Ginny's Destiny and excited about the £120,000 Grey Dawning rematch.