DORSET is responsible for two entries among the total 94 received for the 2024 Randox Grand National.
Sherborne-based trainer Joe Tizzard has entered Eldorado Allen, while Higher Crockermoor handler Harry Fry has thrown Revels Hill into the mix.
Last year, Dorset hopes The Big Breakaway and Sam Brown both fell behind eventual winner Corach Rambler.
Some 60 horses will be trimmed from the entry list to form a reduced field of 34 for the big race on Saturday, April 13.
Irish trainers are responsible for a record 61 entries, with the Aintree spectacular also having a new start time of 4pm this year.
READ MORE: 2023 Grand National - Corach Rambler wins
Organisers have cut the maximum start list from 40 runners to help make the race as safe as possible.
Following the annual review of the race, a number of other changes were announced including the introduction of a standing start and moving the first fence closer to the race.
Reigning champion Corach Rambler heads the ante-post betting for Scottish trainer Lucinda Russell, with another previous winner, the Emmet Mullins-trained Noble Yeats, likely to be popular, too.
Vanillier, second last year, and Becher Chase runner-up Coko Beach are also in the 94.
Irish trainer Gordon Elliott has 26 entries, while compatriot Willie Mullins is responsible for 13.
Weights will be revealed in a fortnight’s time in Liverpool.
Last year’s race was delayed due to Grand National protesters making their way onto the track, with the contest eventually going off nearly 15 minutes later than scheduled.
Sulekha Varma, the Jockey Club’s north west head of racing and clerk of the course at Aintree, said: “We leave no stone unturned in providing world-class standards of welfare for our participants and undertake a review after every Grand National.
“These reviews look at a wide range of factors and the learnings from the process drives a number of changes, large and small, annually. In October we announced that one of the changes being made from 2024 would involve bringing forward the start time of the race, which has been 5.15pm since 2016.
“This was a decision we took after a number of participants and other racing stakeholders raised concerns about the long build-up to the race throughout the day and heightened tension as a result. These were not issues which had been identified as a problem when the race was previously staged at 3.45pm and 4.15pm.
“Bringing forward the start time of the Grand National by 75 minutes to 4pm will also help us to maintain optimal jumping ground, as warm or breezy conditions can dry out the racing surface.”
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