After a fraught few months of negative publicity, racing desperately needed Blackmore’s historic victory at AintreeNot since Lady Godiva rode naked through the streets of Coventry in the 13th century has any woman on horseback caused quite such a public stir. Her modesty covered by the green and gold silks of JP McManus, Rachael Blackmore wrote arguably the most colourful chapter yet in the storied 182-year history of the Grand National. The daughter of a farmer and schoolteacher from Tipperary with no background in racing, she became the first woman to win the world’s most iconic horse race at Aintree on Minella Times. While the horse and its trainer, Henry de Bromhead, also deserve every credit, their place as historical...
Trainer who won with Papillon in 2000 has runner who looks set to improve for marathon trip in Aintree spectacularBetting odds are mischievous beasts at the best of times, and never more so than when 40 runners go to post for the Grand National, Britain’s annual flutter on the gee-gees. For weeks, the prices have been shouting that Jonjo O’Neill’s Cloth Cap is the horse most likely to win on Saturday evening. And whispering too that in the final reckoning, the chances are he probably won’t.Overnight odds of around 5-1, in fact, suggest there is an 80-85% chance that one of the other 39 runners will beat him, but there are so many positives attached to Cloth Cap’s profile that...
Hot favourite Cloth Cap heads the betting for the world’s most famous race at Aintree on SaturdayThe bold-jumping grey is a magnificent sight when he gets into a rhythm and is the best horse in the race on form, including Grade One wins in 2017, 2018 and 2020. This being a handicap, though, that also means he carries top weight and though hardly over the hill at 10, there should be one or two at the other end of the handicap to beat him for speed on the run-in, especially on ground that is quicker than he prefers. Related: Talking Horses: Tiger Roll is back at Aintree, but not in the right race Related: Grand National’s enduring charm embodied by...
The dual Grand National winner lines up over traditional fences on Thursday and misses his chance for Aintree immortalityTiger Roll, one of Aintree’s – and racing’s – favourite sons, returns to Liverpool on Thursday for what may well be the final time in a truly extraordinary career. From one angle, he is 363 days too late, from another he has turned up two days early – and by 3pm it could be both.There is an alternative reality in which Tiger Roll is 48 hours away from a possible date with destiny, and the tilt at a record-equalling third Grand National win which his illustrious record deserves. Michael O’Leary, his owner, thought long and hard about the weight his remarkable little...
The three-day Grand National meeting at Aintree opens on Thursday with Tiger Roll set to be the centre of attentionThe three-day Grand National meeting at Aintree opens on Thursday with Tiger Roll set to be the centre of attention as he faces eight rivals in a bid to add the Grade One Betway Bowl Chase to his remarkable list of high-profile victories.The five-time Cheltenham Festival winner and dual Grand National hero has become a household name without taking on top staying chasers at level weights. But owners Gigginstown House Stud decided to make an exception this time, and Tiger Roll runs at Aintree on Thursday – rather than last Monday’s Irish Grand National or the Grand National at the weekend....