Roll into Grand National Favourite or Heed the Stats?
The 2019 Randox Grand National will take place at the famous Aintree racecourse on April 6th. The race, which captures the hearts and minds of the British public, gives bookmakers their busiest day of their year. Unsurprising as one Briton in four will place a bet on the race and the four-mile two-furlong marathon will be viewed by 600 million people world-wide.
A maximum of 40 horses and jockeys will line-up to contest the steeplechase featuring famed fences such as Becher’s Brook, Valentine’s and The Chair. Over 70,000 racegoers will be on-course to watch the thrills and spills live. Last season the Irish-trained Tiger Roll landed the race at 10/1. It was a short enough price given only two of the last 21 Grand National winners went off at a single-figure price (Comply Or Die in 2008 and Hedgehunter in 2005 – both 7/1). 7/1 is a popular price as the 1998 winner, Earth Summit and 1996 winner Rough Quest were also 7/1.
Ireland’s Grand National Record
The Irish have won National race 26 times in total but Bobbyjo’s 1999 victory was a first success for the Emerald Isle in 24 years. Since then there have been five Irish-trained winners: Papillon (2000), Hedgehunter (2005), Silverbirch (2007), Rule The World (2016) and Tiger Roll (2018). If you have a Grand National free bet you could do worse than place it on an Irish-trained horse but backing Tiger Roll in the Grand National offers little value, his is just 4/1 with the leading bookmakers. The wonderful little horse, who is a four-time winner at the Cheltenham Festival, is set to go off the shortest priced favourite since World War II.
Perfectly Aged
When trying to pinpoint a winner the value of a horse’ age does throw out mixed signals. 2015 victor, Many Clouds, was the first 8-year-old to win the race since Bindaree in 2002 but the last two Grand National winners were also aged 8. Seven of the last 21 winners have been 9-year-olds. You can safely ignore 12-year-olds with only one (Amberleigh House in 2004) winning since 1995. And you have to go back to 1923 to find the last 13-year-old winner.
Previous Grand National Winners
Year Winner Jockey SP
2018 Tiger Roll Davy Russell 10/1
2017 One For Arthur Derek Fox 14/1
2016 Rule The World David Mullins 33/1
2015 Many Clouds Leighton Aspell 25/1
2014 Pineau De Re Leighton Aspell 25/1
2013 Auroras Encore Ryan Mania 66/1
2012 Neptunes Collonges Daryl Jacob 33/1
2011 Ballabriggs Jason Maguire 14/1
2010 Don’t Push It Tony McCoy 10/1
2009 Mon Mome Liam Tredwell 100/1
2008 Comply or Die Timmy Murphy 7/1
2007 Silver Birch Robbie Power 33/1
2006 Numbersixvalverde Niall Madden 11/1
2005 Hedgehunter Ruby Walsh 7/1
Ladies and Gentlemen
Prior to 2015 nine of the last ten horses ridden by women jockeys, a sequence which began with Rosemary Henderson in 1994, completed the course. Neither Katie Walsh or Nina Carberry got round in 2016 but Katie Walsh, the only women rider to take partin 2017, completed again last season. She is now retired and with Bryony Frost set to miss the 2019 race due to injury, all eyes are likely to be on Rachel Blackmore who finished fifth in 2018.
23 individual jockeys have won the race during the past 25 years with Leighton Aspell being an exception (he piloted Pineau De Re to victory in 2014 and followed-up in 2015 aboard Many Clouds) while Ruby Walsh was successful twice (on Papillon in 2000 and Hedgehunter in 2005).
Our Grand National Tip: The initial Grand National betting odds saw Rathvinden, winner of last season’s National Hunt Chase at the Cheltenham Festival, priced up at 20/1. But those odds have been cut following his comfortable victory in the BetVictor Bobbyjo Chase at Fairyhouse. This Irish-trained racehorse has winning form over four-miles, and he can perform equally well on both firm and heavy going. He may be eleven but he is lightly raced and three of the last eleven Grand National winners were aged 11.
You can place a bet on the Grand National anytime from now right up until post time. Our betting partners offer cash drop offers for new customers and these can be used as 2019 Grand National free bets.
Free bets on the National? More like free lottery tickets!
Rathvinden wins it for Willie Mullins