There are very few events on the UK & Ireland sporting calendar as iconic as the Grand National – a National Hunt racing fixture taking place at the Aintree racecourse every April. In what is the feature race of the three-day meeting, the Grand National is a gruelling contest competed over four miles and two-and-a-half-furlongs with 30 fences to be jumped during its running.
Affectionately dubbed as the ‘race the world stops to watch’, the sport’s preeminent event has nearly 200 years of history and a roll of honour that includes some of jumps racing’s all-time great thoroughbreds such as Red Rum and Manifesto.
With that in mind, read on as we take a look at the last three horses to join the Grand National’s esteemed list of winners since its inception in 1829.
2022 – Noble Yeats
Entering last year’s Grand National off the back of a poor run of form that consisted of just one win in his last seven appearances, the Emmet Mullins-trained Noble Yeats was a 50/1 outsider in the betting lines in the lead-up to the race.
And once proceedings got underway, he held a position many fans and pundits thought he would be resigned to for the entirety of his run – the rear. However, after making steady headway at the 12th, the then seven-year-old tracked the leaders and challenged for pole position two out. The gelding managed to overcome a less than stellar final jump and stormed home to reign supreme in one of the biggest Grand National upsets in recent memory.
That run at Aintree kicked off somewhat of a purple patch for Noble Yeats, who won two of his next three before placing in the Grade 2 Cotswold Chase and finishing fourth in the Gold Cup at Cheltenham most recently.
It’s clear punters feel Noble Yeats’ performance at Aintree last year and his form since could bode well for the Irish horse once again this year, with him currently garnering odds of 7/1 in the Grand National 2023 betting odds with most operators – which is good for second favourite for those betting on races.
2021 – Minella Times
An 11/1 Grand National shot two years ago, the Henry de Bromhead-trained Minella Times had experienced a relatively inconsistent career leading up to the 2021 showpiece – having won on just three occasions from his 18 starts. He did, however, hit arguably career best form just months out from running at Aintree, securing a victory at Listowel before being narrowly being beaten at Limerick and Leopardstown respectively.
Couple that with the fact that the gelding had one of the best jockeys in the game onboard in Rachael Blackmore – and he was not one to write off. The pair proved they were a force to be reckoned with on race day, as they battled hard in the midfield before launching an assault on the leaders at the 26th fence.
They would kick on and take the lead with two remaining and held on to win by six-and-a-half-lengths from Balko Des Flos. It was a historic victory for multiple reasons, as it not only marked De Bromhead’s and Blackmore’s maiden Grand National triumph – but it also signalled the first time a female jockey had won the famed race.
2019 – Tiger Roll
Due to it being cancelled in 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the third most recent horse to reign supreme in the Grand National was in 2019 when Tiger Roll made it back-to-back wins for jockey Davy Russell and trainer Gordon Elliott. It was far from an easy victory for the Irish horse, who needed every ounce of his elite endurance and heart to beat Magic of Light by just shy of three lengths.
Tiger Roll joined elite company when he finished first past the post that afternoon, becoming just the ninth horse to reign supreme in the Grand National more than once. He achieved his maiden Grand National triumph in the renewal a year prior, defeating Willie Mullins’ Pleasant Company by a head.