Trainers' quotes: Betfred Grand National Trial at Haydock

View from connections ahead of Saturday's Betfred Grand National Trial at Haydock Park.

Racing royalty mixes with the real thing on Saturday as Tony McCoy rides Monbeg Dude for the first time in Haydock's Betfred Grand National Trial.

Since announcing his retirement after winning the Game Spirit on Mr Mole last weekend, McCoy has been firmly in the winners.

He even rode to victory four times in four different countries in successive days earlier in the week, and it looks inevitable that he will leave the professional ranks having only ever been champion jockey.

Now he has the task of steering the popular Monbeg Dude, part-owned by Mike Tindall, husband of the Queen's granddaughter Zara Phillips, back into the winner's enclosure.

Trainer Michael Scudamore has one eye on Aintree and a return for the Grand National itself, in which he was seventh last year, and having been fourth in the Hennessy and Welsh National under a big weight on his last two runs, he remains in very good form.

"If he comes out of Haydock well then I think we will have a look at one of the handicap races at Cheltenham, but I will speak to the owners about that," said Scudamore.

"Saturday is a big race and he will go there to do his best, but Aintree Is the main aim.

"I would have said, looking at his form, that you could argue that he is better at a Cheltenham or a Chepstow, the more undulating and testing tracks, as they probably play to his strengths more than flat tracks.

"That said, he was third in this race two years ago."

McCoy said: "Monbeg Dude hopefully has a good chance. He ran well in the Welsh National, although Haydock is a lot sharper which is not ideal for him. He is an out-and-out and stayer, but Haydock is not the big, jumping track it once was."

The Philip Hobbs-trained Gas Line Boy has already won over course and distance this season but the handicapper hit him with a 15lb rise and he was subsequently pulled up in the Welsh National.

Dropped 5lb for that, jockey Richard Johnson still thinks he may be too high in the weights.

"He won up there before Christmas and bolted up in a real stayers' race," he told At The Races.

"The handicapper was pretty harsh on him putting him up 15lb. He has come down 5lb from that now, but it's still a big ask. He enjoys the trip and the track, so he's got to have a chance.

"He can run the odd very disappointing race and he is a bit in and out. He's already won round Haydock before and a big, galloping track suited him earlier in the season. Hopefully he will get in the same mood again."

Right at the bottom of the weights is Harry The Viking, formerly owned by Sir Alex Ferguson but now running in the colours worn by Auroras Encore to win the Grand National two years ago.

His trainer Sandy Thomson feels he is capable of getting involved.

Thomson said: "He jumps and stays and seems well, so we'll see what he can do.

"He was rated around 140 a couple of years ago, so he's a talented horse and all the horses seem to be running well and finishing at the moment, which is great. Hopefully he can go and run a big race."

Mick Channon's Loch Ba took part in the attritional West Wales National at Ffos Las in which only two finished two weeks ago, but he was pulled up relatively early and jockey Andrew Thornton does not think he will have taken much out of himself.

"He pulled himself up, he just couldn't go in it (the ground)," said Thornton.

"A lot was made over whether they should have raced. It was perfectly safe, but you get horses that handle it and there are those that don't. Mine likes soft ground but he couldn't go in that heavy ground.

"He couldn't go any further and you know in that sort of ground to pull them up. What would you rather run on? Firm or ground like that. He looked after himself.

"I talked to Mick and we've put the visor on to sharpen up his jumping, the ground won't be as bad and he's got an each-way chance."

Like Monbeg Dude, Mountainous is a former winner of the Welsh National but he pulled up in the race this season and trainer Richard Lee believes the fact his yard was going through a quiet spell may have been the reason.

"That is all we can think of," said Lee.

"His first run was very good, perfectly acceptable, but the Welsh National was too bad to be true. If he'd finished 10th we could maybe have said the handicapper has him but it was a total non-event.

"We're hoping for better now, he's been going well at home and the horses are in better form, too. Strangely enough he's not been to Haydock before, so we'll see if he takes to it.

"He's not ground dependent, he won a Welsh National on heavy but can handle better ground. We won't be using the ground as an excuse, put it that way."