THE REASON so many people love horse racing is its unpredictability. It is not unnecessary in this sport that the favourite horse always wins. Sometimes the underdogs also stole the show by claiming the prestigious titles. We can see countless examples of this in the Grand National, which is one of the most popular racing events among punters.
1-Red Rum
Red Rum is considered by many as the greatest horse of all time. It seems unlikely that we will ever see the like of Red Rum again. He achieved an unmatched historic treble. There has never been another who has managed to equal this record.
He claimed his first victory at Aintree in 1973. Red Rum wasn’t rated very highly before the race but he went on to win it in spectacular fashion. The amazing horse pulled off that feat by winning the next year as well.
However, many started questioning his ability to win again at Aintree when he came second in 1975 and 1976. But Red Rum proved them wrong by blowing away the competition in 1977. And that’s how he became the first horse in history to claim three Grand Nationals.
2- Foinavon
Foinavon is also one of the most famous horses in the history of Grand National. He claimed the prestigious title because he happened to be the slowest of all horses on the day of racing.
Foinavon’s chances of victory were very slim in the 1967 Grand National. His owner Cyril Watkins had such little belief in him that he wasn’t even present at the course. However, he shocked all the spectators when he galloped to victory at 100/1.
What happened was that at the 23rd fence, a riderless horse caused a melee. He easily managed to avoid the chaos because he was quite far away at that time. While the rest of the field fell, refused or were hampered, Foinavon continued the race and ultimately won, shocking all the spectators.
3- Tiger Roll
It looked almost impossible that a horse would rival Red Rum’s feat by claiming back-to-back Nationals. However, that actually happened in 2019 when Tiger Roll pulled off two consecutive victories at Aintree.
Tiger Roll won the 2018 edition by the skin of his teeth as Pleasant Company gave him a tough challenge. However, it was doubly challenging the following year as he was burdened with third top weight of 11st 5lb. However, Tiger Roll showed his magic again and shocked the spectaculars with an amazing performance. He became the first horse in 45 years to claim back-to-back Grand Nationals.
Tiger Roll’s successes earned him enormous popularity and he became a household name. It is very unfortunate that the Covid-19 pandemic robbed him of a chance to aim for three consecutive victories at Aintree.
4- Neptune Collonges
Victory for our favourite horse is always nice but if it wins in a very tense and close contest, then the joy and excitement is something else. That is what happened in the 2012 Grand National which witnessed one of the closest races of all time.
Neptune Collonges and Sunnyhillboy provided a spectacular display. It was so close that it took a minute and a half for the judges to separate them in the photo. Ultimately Neptune Collonges won the race by a nose.
5- Don’t Push It
AP McCoy is widely regarded as one of the greatest jockeys of all time. He made a huge name in horse racing, which is not the most popular sports in America, by winning all the prestigious races. However, to his great frustration, the Grand National always eluded him despite several attempts. It is said that the Irish great made 14 attempts but the best he could manage was a 3rd placed finish at Aintree.
But he broke the jinx with an enormously talented horse named Don’t Push It. He was owned by J.P. McManus while Jonjo O’Neill was his trainer.
This is a submitted article
