Grand National Results

Grand National 1987 Results

Admin November 26, 2025 No Comments

Run on good going on April 4, 1987, the 1987 Grand National featured a maximum 40 runners, including the 1986 winner, West Tip, who was sent off 5/1 favourite. Victory, though, went to the 28/1 chance Maori Venture, owned by Harry ‘Jim’ Joel – who, at the age of 92, became the oldest winning owner in Grand National history – trained by Andrew Turnell, in East Hendred near Wantage, Oxfordshire, and ridden by Steve Knight.

Lean Ar Aghaidh, trained by Stan Mellor and ridden by 20-year-old Guy Landau, led over the final fence, but approaching the Elbow, halfway up the run-in, was challenged, and passed, by Maori Venture on the stand side and The Tsarevich on the far side. Maori Venture finished the stronger of the pair, passing the post five lengths ahead of The Tsarevich, with Lean Ar Aghaidh third, a further four lengths away, and West Tip fourth, a similar distance further back.

All told, 22 runners completed the course, but one that didn’t was second-favourite Dark Ivy, trained by Gordon Richards and ridden by Phil Tuck, who suffered a fatal fall at Becher’s Brook on the first circuit. The 11-year-old grey broke his neck when turning somersault at the infamous fence and the incident made front-page news in the tabloid press, led to public outcry and became a defining moment in the history of the Grand National.

Turnell – who, himself, rode in the Grand National 13 times, finishing third on Charles Dickens behind Red Rum and L’Escargot in 1974 – said afterwards, “It’s quite emotional. I’ve tried to win it for a lot of years as a rider and a trainer.” Knight, who retired from race riding in 1989, said later, “Winning the National was the highlight of my riding career by a long way…”

Grand National 1989 Results

Admin November 26, 2025 No Comments

Run on heavy going, on April 8, 1989, the 1989 Grand National featured a maximum 40 runners, including Dixton House, trained by John Edwards, who had won the Ritz Club National Hunt Handicap Chase at the Cheltenham Festival on his previous start and was sent off 7/1 favourite. However, the market-leader parted with jockey Tom Morgan at Becher’s Brook on the first circuit and the result of the race was overshadowed by fatal injuries suffered by two other horses at the same fence.Seeandem and Brown Trix were humanely euthanised after an incident that resulted in widespread criticism of the BBC, for its coverage and insensitive commentary, and further safety changes, including levelling the landing side of the fence and filling in Becher’s Brook itself.

In a strange twist of irony, victory went to the 12-year-old Little Polveir who, until six weeks previously, had been trained by John Edwards, but had been transferred to Toby Balding after being bought by Edward Harvey for his son, David, in the Grand Military Gold Cup at Sandown Park in March. Having unseated the aforementioned Tom Morgan at the fourth-last fence in the 1988 Grand National, when in the lead, Little Polveir was widely considered past his best, but nonetheless made his fourth appearance in the world-famous steeplechase a winning one.

Ridden by Jimmy Frost – father of Bryony – and sent off at 28/1, Little Polveir led over the water jump at the end of the first circuit and, ultimately, ran on well on the run-in to beat the 1986 winner, West Tip, also a 12-year-old, by seven lengths. The 1987 Cheltenham Gold Cup winner, The Thinker, finished a running-on third, a further half a length away and, all told, 14 of the 40 starters completed the course. Jimmy Frost said later, “It was a day that changed my life, an unexpected one at that.”

Grand National 1988 Results

Admin November 26, 2025 No Comments

The 1988 Grand National, run on good to soft going on April 9, 1988, was an eventful affair, in which just nine of the maximum 40 starters completed the course. The favourite, Sacred Path, trained by Oliver Sherwood and ridden by Clive Cox, fell at the very first fence and the eventual winner, Rhyme ‘N’ Reason, the joint-second favourite, was down on his haunches after a monumental blunder at Becher’s Brook on the first circuit, forcing jockey Brendan Powell Snr. To make a remarkable recovery.

Granted time to recover, Rhyme ‘N’ Reason made steady headway from the rear of the field late on the second circuit and, when Little Polveir blundered and unseated rider at the fifth-last fence, was left in the lead. At the second-last, he was headed by strong-travelling Durham Edition, but rallied approaching the Elbow, halfway up the run-in, lead again inside the final hundred yards and galloped on resolutely to win by four lengths. Durham Edition finished clear second, 15 lengths ahead of Monanore, who could only stay on at one pace in the closing stages, in third, and a further eight lengths ahead of West Tip, in fourth place.

Fortunate he may have been, but few would argue that Rhyme ‘N’ Reason was a worthy winner of the Grand National. He had won the Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse in 1986 as a six-year-old and, notwithstanding a fall in the Cheltenham Gold Cup three weeks previously, had won four of his last six completed starts over fences, including the Racing Post Chase (now the Coral Trophy) at Kempton Park in January. Reflecting on the way the race panned out, Powell said, “The thing about Rhyme ‘N’ Reason was you didn’t want to be in front on him for too long. I was getting a lovely lead into the race from Little Polveir and then he came down so I was left in front way too soon.”

Grand National 1981 Results

Admin November 26, 2025 No Comments

The 1981 Grand National, run on good going on April 4, 1981, produced a fairytale finish that was immortalised in the 1982 book, ‘Champion’s Story: A Great Human Triumph’, co-written by winning jockey Bob Champion, and the subject film adaptation, ‘Champions’, starring John Hurt as Champion. Champion was stable jockey to Josh Gifford at Findon, Sussex, but was diagnosed with testicular cancer in 1979, leading to surgery, chemotherapy and hospitalisation. However, he recovered sufficiently to take the ride on Aldaniti, trained by Gifford, in the Grand National and the rest, as they say, is history.

Aldaniti, for his part, was a talented, but fragile, steeplechaser, who had previously finished third in the Cheltenham Gold Cup and second in the Scottish Grand National, but had broken down more than once in a career plagued by injury. Nevertheless, as an 11-year-old, he and Champion reunited to win the Whitbread Trial Chase at Ascot in February 1981 and, consequently, he was sent off 10/1 second-favourite for the Grand National, behind only 8/1 favourite Spartan Missile.

Indeed, it would be the market leaders who went on to dominate the finish, although the race did not go entirely to plan for Champion and Aldaniti. Champion had been instructed to hold Aldaniti up until the final fence but, after a dream run around the Canal Turn, the pair were already among the leaders and, two fences later, Aldaniti leapt into the lead. Thereafter, he made most of the running and passed the post four lengths ahead of his nearest pursuer, Spartan Missile.

The latter, ridden by 54-year-old amateur John Thorne, finished well, but effectively go going too late and was never quite reaching Aldaniti. A similar comment applies to Royal Mail (not to be confused with the 1937 Grand National winner, of the same name), who finished third, a further two lengths away.