the conditions required to run in the grand national.

​You may disagree with me but it is my contention that the B.H.A. cock-up every good intention they try to apply to the sport they are supposed to either govern or oversee, depending on your point of view. The only exception is the rule to limit jockeys to one meeting a day, and that initially was imposed on them by government decree during the ‘scamdemic’. Don’t get me started! Restricting jockeys to one meeting a day was good for the family life of jockeys, the mental health of jockeys, the planet, as they were bombing up and down motorways less often, thereby cutting their carbon emissions and general wear and tear on their cars and, most importantly, the one day rule allowed many more jockeys to earn a better standard of living due to the increase of opportunities to ride and earn.
The B.H.A. are also on the road to, and here you may again disagree with me, to use a street expression, ‘fucking-up’ ( and I am not one to use swear words, either in print or as part of everyday language, and I apologise for the drop in standards now ) the greatest jewel of British horse racing, the Grand National. I concede that the motivation of the B.H.A. was to make the it a classier race with classier horses taking part. To my mind, though, it is fast becoming a mediocrity of the middle-band, with no genuine Gold Cup class horses entered and no horses whose connections are of the lower echelons of the sport. In short, the romance of the Grand National is no more. And that is both sad and unforgivable. 
The conditions for the 2023 running of the race are as follows: For 7-year-olds + which, prior to March 28th, have started in a steeple chase during the current season, and have been placed first, second, third or fourth in a steeple chase with an official distance description of 2miles, seven and a half furlongs or more, at any time during the horse’s career. Horses must be also allotted a rating of 125 or more by the B.H.A. handicapper following a review of the horses entered and after taking into account of races run up to and including February 19th. Horses which are not qualified for a rating in Great Britain or Ireland at closing may also be entered. Such horses may be eligible for a weight providing the handicapper is satisfied that the horse’s racecourse performances up to and including February 19th would merit a minimum rating of 125. To qualify, horses must have run at least six-times in steeple chases run under the rules of racing of a recognised Racing Authority up to and including February 19th.
The conditions, you must agree, match the length of the race. The conditions are set not to encourage participation but to exclude and discourage.
As the conditions stand, and this is a far-fetched scenario, but what if at the start of the year the O’Leary brothers decided to give Tiger Roll another crack at the race. Yes, he’s now too old and the O’Leary brothers never change their minds. But let’s say Tiger Roll won the race as a 7 and 8-year-old; the present conditions would not allow him to even be entered, given the short period Gordon Elliott would have to get him fit to run in a race of 3-miles. My argument is this: there is no provision for previous winners to be exempt from the qualifying conditions. Captain Kangaroo could run, even with 4 no-finishes in his last 4 races but a previous Grand National winner might be excluded.
Also, if the B.H.A. is so keen to protect the perception of the race to the public, wouldn’t it be a good idea to have ‘win and you are in’ races. The winners of a Scottish, Irish, Welsh or Midland National would be proven stayers and sound jumpers and the connections should have the opportunity to run their horses in the Grand National in spite of whatever rating they have. Suitable horses, to my mind, are a better fit for the race than horses with high ratings but of doubtful stamina and jumping ability.
Personally, I think the Grand National is in need of protection from the meddling of the B.H.A. rather than the ignorant antis. 
There are horses entered in the Grand National with less obvious chances of winning than Chemical Energy and Minella Crooner, neither of whom are eligible for the race as they have not met the race conditions. And we all know that Iwilldoit would have started the most favoured of the British runners, based on him being a winner of both the Welsh National and the Midland Classic, yet not allowed to run because he has only taken part in 5 chases.
The conditions for the Grand National must be revisited and revised to take into account the huge drop in entries this time around, especially from British trainers. I would like to see half-a-dozen races through the season with ‘win and you are in the Grand National’ as part of the prize for winning. I would suggest the Coral Trophy at Newbury and an Irish race added to the four suggested earlier. I would like the 125 rating dropped, with the handicapper having the discretion to exclude an entry due to the lack of relevant ability, and I would like previous winners to be exempt from all race conditions.
The Grand National is special and needs to be protected as such. I do not believe the present conditions for entry and running go anywhere close to achieving the best possible horses facing the starter year in, year out. And yes, when it comes to horse racing, I am romantically inclined and yearn to see another Mon Mome/Liam Treadwell class of winner. Though not a Red Marauder.