Grand National - A Matter of Course

There are many horse racing events which capture the heart and imagination of fans but all come second place to the Grand National. On the 11th April (4:15 Aintree) the world and his wife will cheer their fancy in the greatest steeplechase. Take a look at this years runners and odds for the Grand National. 

Few races have such a history that even the fences which the horses jump tell a story. The Grand National is run over a distance of 4 miles 3 1/2 furlongs. The horses run two circuits and jump 30 fences.  

There are 16 fences all topped with a least 14'' of spruce from the Lake District, which cushions the obstacles. All sixteen fences are jumped on the first circuit. However, on the second circuit the Chair and the Water jump are bypassed leading into the finishing straight. 

A number of fences have been given names such as Becher's Brook, Foinavon & The Canal Turn. 

But how did they get their names?

Fence 1 and 17 (4 ft 6'') Often met at great speed. In 1951 12 horses fell at this fence. In 2011 the drop on the landing side was reduced for safety.

Fence 2 and 18 (4 ft 7'') This fence used to be called The Fan after a mare who refused to jump this obstacle for three races in succession. However this fell out of use when the fences were relocated in 1888.

Fence 3 and 19 - Open Ditch (4 ft 10'', fronted by 6 ft ditch)

Fence 4 and 20 (4 ft 10'') 

Fence 5 and 21 (5 ft) precedes the most famous fence on the course

Fence 6 and 22  - Becher's Brook (5 ft, with landing side 6-10'' lower) 

This fence takes its name from Captain Martin Becher who fell in the first race and took shelter in the small brook on the landing side while the other horses jumped over his head. Becher was quoted as saying: ''The water tastes disgusting without the benefits of whiskey.''

Fence 7 and 23 - Foinavon   (4 ft 6'')

Named in 1984 after 1967 winner Foinavon who won at odds of 100/1 after avoiding a dramatic accident when most of the field fell or refused to jump.

Fence 8 and 24 - Canal Turn (5 ft) 

A 90- degree left turn upon jumping. Amazingly before the First World War many loose horses continued after the jump landing in the Leeds and Liverpool Canal. 

Fence 9 and 25  - Valentine's Brook (5 ft with 5 ft 6'' brook)

Named after a horse Valentine in 1840 who was reputed to have jumped the fence hind legs first. 

Fence 10 and 26 (5 ft)

Fence 11 and 27 - Open Ditch (5 ft, with 6 ft ditch on takeoff side) 

Fence 12 and 28 - Ditch (5 ft with 5 ft 6'' ditch on landing side)

Fence 13 and 29 - (4 ft 7'') 

Fence 14 and 30 - (4 ft 6'')

Fence 15 - The Chair (5 ft 2'', preceded by a 6 ft wide ditch)  

The only fence to have claimed a human life. In 1862 Joe Wynne fell and died from his injuries. This accident brought about the ditch being placed before the fence in an attempt to slow the horses down. This fence was originally known as the Monument jump but renamed The Chair in the 1930s. A judge used to sit at this fence to recorded the finishing order of horses but the practice was done with in 1850 although a monument still remains where the chair stood.  

Fence 16 - Water Jump (2 ft 6'')

Originally this was a stone wall in the early years of the race. The water jump was one of the most popular features until television coverage saw the Chair become the major obstacle of interest. 

The run in is one of the longest in the United Kingdom  at 494 yards.
   

Grand National 2015 Ante-post preview

The Grand National at Aintree in April remains the highlight of the steeplechasing year and one of the most anticipated events of the whole sporting calendar. Currently, bookmakers are offering 20-1 the field in their ante-post betting lists.

Shutthefrontdoor

The early favourite is last year’s Irish Grand National winner Shutthefrontdoor, owned by JP McManus and trained by Jonjo O’Neill. They enjoyed Aintree triumph with Don’t Push It in 2010 but suffered heartache in 2012 when the Cheltenham Gold Cup winner lost his life in a freak accident whilst attempting the big-race double.

Shutthefrontdoor had always promised to be a useful stayer and finished a close sixth in the National Hunt Chase at Cheltenham over four miles. He confirmed the promise of that run when winning at Fairyhouse and began his 2014-15 campaign with a comfortable victory at Carlisle.

O’Neill also has Merry King prominent in the ante-post lists after a fine run in the Hennessy Gold Cup in November. He is another dour stayer but proved disappointing last season after a similarly encouraging effort at Newbury.

Unioniste

Trainer Paul Nicholls ended his Grand National hoodoo with Neptune Collonges in 2012 and he looks to have an ideal candidate with Unioniste.

Like Neptune Collonges, he is a grey gelding racing in the colours of John Hales. He was trained with the Gold Cup in mind last year and although he fell short of that standard he remains a top quality handicapper, especially when the mud is flying.

Nicholls firmly believes that Rocky Creek has the class to win a Grand National and he will have benefitted from his run round in fifth place last season. Stable companion Sam Winner is also prominent in the early lists but may be handicapped out of it after some fine efforts at Grade 1 level.

Monbeg Dude

Last year’s race may be a useful guide in helping to find the 2015 Grand National winner. Pineau De Re is on course to attempt back-to-back victories in the race, a feat last achieved by Red Rum in 1973 and 1974. Runner-up Balthazar King is also being trained specifically for this race along with Alvarado and Monbeg Dude who both ran with credit in 2014.

Monbeg Dude won the Welsh National in 2013 and advertised his claims last year with a fine victory in a Grade 2 chase at Cheltenham. He survived a couple of mistakes to finish seventh in last year’s Grand National and connections will be hoping for softer ground this time.

He caught the eye when running on into fourth place in the Hennessy behind Many Clouds. He again ran well at Chepstow in December when finishing fourth behind Emperors Choice and is sure to be among the leading contenders in April.

Alvarado maintained an incredible sequence for owners Angela and William Rucker when finishing fourth last year. The Rucker family have now had a horse placed in each of the last six Grand Nationals dating back to State Of Play in 2009.

Spring Heeled

Cheltenham festival winner Spring Heeled could also be aimed at Aintree this year. Jim Culloty’s eight-year-old held off the challenge of Cause Of Causes to win the Kim Muir in March. He has since finished fifth in the Gold Cup at Sandown and fourth in the Galway Plate. Culloty may run Spring Heeled over hurdles until the weights are published for Aintree in an effort to protect his handicap mark. Good ground is the preferred surface for the son of Old Vic.

Mendip Express may just have booked his Aintree ticket when running on late to finish second to Oscar Time in the Becher Handicap Chase in December. Harry Fry’s nine-year-old has won four of his eight races under rules with his only disappointment coming when pulled up in the Scottish National last year.

The Grand National takes place at Aintree on Saturday 11th April 2015 with a TV audience expected to be in advance of 600 million people.

By Harvey Mayson

Early Indicators for the 2015 Grand National

Ok, yes, it is very early days. The National Hunt season has not even got into full swing yet, but this is the time of year to find the best value on the most valuable steeplechase in the world. Here we will look at some of the main contenders for the big race at Aintree next April to try and point readers in the right direction for an ante-post wager.

Early favourite

According to Betfair, the early favourite for the 4 miles 3 ½ furlongs contest, run over 30 fences is Shutthefrontdoor, trained by Jonjo O’Neill. The seven-year old (who will be eight on the day of the race) shot to the head of the ante-post market with a decisive win in the Irish Grand National back in April. Owned by JP McManus – who has already tasted victory in the race with Don’t Push It back in 2010, the son of Accordion could be a lively contender.

An indication to the merits of Shutthefrontdoor may well lie with Holywell – who beat its stable mate by 3 ¼ lengths at the Cheltenham festival last March, in receipt of 4lbs. Holywell has since climbed to the head of the Cheltenham Gold Cup betting after winning at the Aintree meeting, and the horse’s further improvement this season would only boost the form and hopes of Shutthefrontdoor.

Major concerns

Last years’ winner, Pineau De Re will look to buck the trend that goes back to the legendary Red Rum who was the last to record back-to-back Grand National wins in 1973-74. A five-length success over Balthazar King, the Dr Richard Newland trained 11-year old proved too good for the rest of the field and returned a 25/1 winner. The major concerns for Pineau De Re are the facts that no horse has retained the National for 31 years, and he will be 12 years old come April – Amberleigh House is the only 12 year-old to win since 1996 – which must be another negative.

He will also be in the firm grip of the handicapper also after such a convincing performance that is likely to make it a much tougher task. Records are there to be broken however, but the statistics are surely against Pineau De Re this time around.

Potential improvers

A couple of horses who ran with promise in the 2014 race that will hope for improvement are Double Seven, trained in Ireland by Martin Brassil and Paul Nicholls’ Rocky Creek. Double Seven ran a very creditable third place finish back in April under the champion jockey AP McCoy, finishing 6 ¼ lengths behind the winner. Providing that Shutthefrontdoor turns up at Aintree, McCoy will have a serious headache in deciding of which JP McManus horse to choose from, but Double Seven has the course form in the book, which is an obvious plus.

Rocky Creek was touted as a potential Gold Cup horse in the not too distant past, but those lofty aspirations have since faded with some mediocre performances at that level. A fifth-place finish back in April was a very decent effort on the 8-year olds’ first time over the National fences and a crack at the 2015 renewal could well be the gelding’s main target this term.

Lively outsider

One to keep an eye on at a fancy price is the Jim Dreaper trained Goonyella. The seven year-old son of Presenting narrowly missed the cut for the 2014 race, but will surely be aimed again in 2015. Some reasonable performances in last years’ Welsh National and the 2014 Irish National without causing too much noise could well be a benefit this time around especially if the ground turns out softer than good.

Summary

It is obviously a very difficult task to pick the winner of the 2015 Grand National with over seven months to the race, but hopefully some of these horses could well be picking up a piece of the prize money come April. There is value to be had at this time of the year in placing a small stakes wager on the event, good luck in finding it!

National winners setting sights on Aintree 2015

A glance at the ante-post market for the 2015 Crabbies Grand National at Aintree, a race worth total prize money of £1 million, shows that last year’s hero Pineau de Re and Shutthefrontdoor, impressive winner of the Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse, are amongst a number of horses vying for favouritism at around 26.0 with most firms in the Grand National betting, writes Elliot Slater.

There’s a long way to go before the 40 runners will face the starter for “the world’s greatest steeplechase” at Aintree racecourse in the spring, but already connections of the two respective Grand National heroes of last year are laying out their plans for the campaign ahead.

Pineau de Re, trained by Dr Richard Newland, proved a revelation last term and far exceeded even the wildest expectations of his new owner, Mr Provan, who purchased the veteran privately from his previous patrons who had raced the horse over a number of seasons in Ireland under the guidance of trainer Philip Fenton. The French-bred gelding had placed in graded hurdles in his youth but had seemingly plateaued some time ago over fences, yet the change of scene and the new surroundings of Newland’s Warwickshire stables brought about a remarkable transformation in the 11-year-old.

After winning a veterans handicap chase at Exeter in January he switched to hurdles and very nearly pulled off an amazing win in the Pertemps Handicap Hurdle Final at the Cheltenham Festival before taking his chance over the still awesome Aintree fences, being sent off at Grand National betting odds of 25/1. The rest is history, as Leighton Aspell’s mount galloped to a superb five-length victory over Balthazar King, catapulting his handler into the international sporting spotlight.

Dr Newland is hopeful that despite the certainty of having to carry more weight in the big race this year Pineau de Re (26.0) has a sporting chance of getting involved at the business end of the contest and is likely to campaign him over hurdles for most of the season, keeping the old horse fresh for another assault on the £1 million Crabbies-sponsored showcase event

On the other side of the Irish Sea another smart staying handicap chaser made a big name for himself last term and could be one to definitely keep on the right side in the season ahead with his ambitious owner JP McManus, trainer Jonjo O’Neill, and jockey Tony McCoy eyeing a crack at the Aintree marathon on the spring.

Shutthefrontdoor achieved a tremendous amount in his first season over fences having previously shown ability over hurdles. There’s no doubt that the gelded son of Accordion exceeded expectations with the rapid progress he made over fences, culminating in a famous victory in the Irish Grand National when getting the better of a tremendous tussle with Golden Wonder to score by three-quarters-of-a-length under a great ride from Barry Geraghty.

Tony McCoy had ridden Shutthefrontdoor on most of his outings over fences - with the exception of his previous outing at Cheltenham in the Terry Biddlecombe National Hunt Chase (for amateur riders) - but he was unable to travel to Ireland for the big race and Geraghty proved a more than able substitute at Fairyhouse.

At just seven years old the Irish National winner is likely still improving and hopes are understandably high that a horse with his stamina and attitude could well have something to offer at Aintree in the spring when he could well be amongst the market principals, especially if McCoy, very much a housewives favourite these days, is back on board.

Long-term leading fancies for the 2015 Grand National

When Dr Richard Newland’s Pineau De Re stormed home five lengths clear of the admirable Balthazar King in April’s first Crabbies-sponsored Grand National at Aintree it catapulted the trainer very much into the headlines, shining the spotlight on a man who has for some time been noted as very much on the up-and-up by aficionados of the winter game.

Newland ended last campaign with a tremendous 23% winning strike rate and so far this season has sent out 11 winners from 39 runners at an even better winning ratio of 28%. These figures would be the envy of virtually every other National Hunt trainer and there is no doubt that the Worcestershire-based handler is a very talented horseman. It therefore is far from beyond the bounds of possibility that Newland might be able to bring this year’s winner of “the world’s greatest steeplechase” back to Aintree where he has showed such a liking for the track and its still unique fences.

Looking at the current Grand National odds, Pineau De Re [pictured] is currently a 25/1 ante-post joint-favourite alongside the 2014 Irish Grand National winner Shutthefrontdoor, trained by Jonjo O’Neill, and the Martin Brassil-trained Double Seven, third behind Pineau De Re at Aintree and like Shutthefrontdoor owned by leading National Hunt jumps owner and gambler, JP McManus.

McManus has never hidden his fondness for the Grand National and celebrated in style when his Don’t Push Me landed a massive gamble under Tony McCoy on the big day back in 2010. Shutthefrontdoor will be an eight-year-old for next year’s big race, the perfect age for a horse with a tremendously progressive profile as a staying chaser.

Double Seven, sent off the 10/1 joint-favourite for the 2014 Grand National under Tony McCoy, has now shown that he can handle the hurly-burly of the great race and as a nine-year-old will also fall into the ideal age category for a race that could very well be within his capabilities.