EMMET Mullins has had better Cheltenham Festivals but he has a big chance of ending the week on a high as he saddles the likely favourite J’Arrive De L’Est in the £160,000 Jenningsbet Midlands Grand National at Uttoxeter today.

Imported from France at the end of last season, J’Arrive De L’Est has only had two starts for Mullins, both over the Cheltenham cross-country circuit, finishing second both times.

His two conquerors, Final Orders and Favori De Champdou, finished first and second at Cheltenham this week, so the seven-year-old gelding’s form is very solid.

Balloted out of the Festival Cross Country Chase, J’Arrive De L’Est switches to conventional racecourse fences today and goes up in trip by a few furlongs to four and a quarter miles. The in-form James Bowen takes the ride.

Irish trainers have won six renewals of the Midlands National since 2000, most recently with Screaming Colours in 2022.

There are two other Irish-trained runners in today’s field - Barry Connell’s My Immortal (14/1) and the John McConnell-trained Bodhisattva (66/1).

The ground was heavy when My Immortal won the Grand National Trial at Punchestown last month and Finian Maguire keeps the ride. Officially the going is soft at Uttoxeter but one assumes it is drying out which might not be in his favour. He’s a 10-year-old and you have to go back to 1994 to find the last time a horse of that age won this race.

Best of the home team looks to be the consistent Aworkinprogress, who has has only tasted defeat once in seven chase starts, and has seemingly been kept fresh for this race since he returned to winning form at Lingfield in January over a marathon trip. His owner J.P. McManus won this with Time To Get Up in 2021.

Dan Skelton’s Deafening Silence has run consistently well without winning in big staying handicap chases this season. This is one of few big Saturday handicaps his yard is yet to win, and this nine-year-old is still relatively lightly-raced for a horse of his age.

Git Maker posted a much more encouraging effort when fifth at Haydock last time, while top-weight Rock My Way has to shoulder 12st in this for the Tizzard family. He has struggled since being raised 9lb by the handicapper for his comprehensive win at Ascot in November.

Paul Nicholls won this with Truckers Lodge in 2020 and his Isaac Des Obeaux has not finished out of the first three in any of his previous five starts. If he is in the same form as when he posted a first chase success on his penultimate start then he should be there or thereabouts.

Jupiter Allen’s bloodless Wincanton victory was a career-best last time, and he must be respected as he bids to become the first seven-year-old since Synchronised in 2010 to win this.

Neo King ran a fine race in the Grand National Trial at Haydock to stay on into third and he should relish every inch of this trip. Grand Albert is closely matched with Neo King, Git Maker and Deafening Silence on that Haydock form.