Every year the Grand National produces very different stories from jockeys and horses alike; uplifting scenes from a victor and heartbreak when a mere inch divides the loser from the winner at the end of nearly four-and-a-half miles and thirty challenging fences. In 1839 the first winner was aptly named. This article lists the first, second, third and fourth-placed runners in the Grand National, a National Hunt horse race held annually over a distance of 4 miles 3½ furlongs at Aintree Racecourse in England. Shaded areas indicate the unofficial precursors of the Grand National (1836–38), the wartime substitutes at Gatwick Racecourse (1916–18), the cancelled period during World War II.

1. Tiger Roll wins a thrilling 2019 Grand National to become the first horse since Red Rum 45 years ago to win the race back-to-back.
2. Winner of the Kim Muir Chase at the 2019 Cheltenham Festival. A faller in the 2019 Irish National but was running well at the time. Will be another year older and stronger in 2021 and his yard have history in the race after winning the Grand National in 2000, while his owner – JP McManus – won the 2010 renewal.

SOME FAMOUS GAMBLES

• The very first winner Lottery (1839) was made 5/1 favourite following his earlier success in the Cheltenham Steeplechase.
• Another successful 19th century punt came in 1866 when owner/ trainer Edward Studd had £1,000 at 40/1 about Salamander. His £40,000 winnings would equate to nearly £3 million at today’s values.
• Manifesto hit the bookies hard on both occasions he won the Grand National, in 1897 and 1899. He was sent off 6/1 favourite for his first win when owned by heavy-gambling Irish solicitor Harry Dyas. He was 5/1 second favourite two years later when scoring for new owner John Bulteel. The 4/1 favourite was his half-sister Gentle Ida, who fell.
• A confident Vincent O’Brien told owner Joe ‘Mincemeat’ Griffin to have a good bet on Early Mist in the 1953 race. Griffin won £100,000 when his horse came in and he also owned the 1954 winner Royal Tan, trained by O’Brien too.
• Prolific gambler Terry Ramsden bet £50,000 eachway at 8/1 about Mr Snugfit in the 1986. The horse, who was also combined in doubles and trebles, returned a profit when coming fourth.
• Papillon’s success in 2000 for trainer Ted Walsh and his jockey son Ruby was a popular victory. Tipped by the Racing Post’s Pricewise column at 33/1 on the morning of the race, he was sent off at 10/1 by race time.
• Part-owner Mike Futter estimated his total winnings were £800,000 when Monty’s Pass scored in 2003. The five-person Dee Racing syndicate netted over £1 million on the winner, who started at 16/1 but had been backed down from 66/1 by his owners.

OUTSIDERS WINNING

100/1 Mon Mome (2009), Foinavon (1967), Caughoo (1947), Gregalach (1929) and Tipperary Tim (1928).

66/1 Auroras Encore (2013), Ayala (1963), Russian Hero (1949), and Rubio (1908).

50/1 Last Suspect (1985), Anglo (1966), Sheila’s Cottage (1948) and Forbra (1932).

SHORTEST-PRICED WINNERS

• Poethlyn (1919) at 11/4
• Huntsman (1862) at 3/1
• Roquefort (1885) at 100/30

Grand National Weights

HIGHEST WINNING WEIGHT

12st 7lb carried by four winners to victory in the Grand National: Poethlyn (1919), Jerry M (1912), Manifesto (1899) and Cloister (1893).

This is a record that will not be broken as the top-weight was lowered to 12st in 1956, then went down to 11st 12lb in 2002 and to 11st 10lb in 2009.

Since Poethlyn, only four horses have triumphed with 12st or more – Red Rum (12st in 1974), Reynoldstown (12st 2lb in 1936), Golden Miller (12st 2lb in 1934) and Sprig (12st 4lb in 1927).

LOWEST WINNING WEIGHT

9st 6lb by Freetrader in 1856.
The minimum weight now is 10st, regardless whether a horse’s rating merits less (termed “racing from out of the handicap”).
The race’s popularity in recent years has seen few entries from out of the handicap make the final field.

SPECIAL DISCRETION

The Randox Health Grand National is the only race where the official handicapper specially frames the weights, often taking into account past Aintree form.
The weights are announced at a launch in February and do not change afterwards as there are no penalties for success after that time. British Horseracing Authority Head of Handicapping Phil Smith has framed the weights since 1999. Smith has encouraged the best horses to take part by compressing the weights at the top of the handicap since 2001 – giving them a more lenient mark than their official rating, mainly because of the race’s long distance.
He was rewarded with the closest finish in Grand National history in 2012 when Neptune Collonges defied 11st 6lb to beat Sunyhillboy by a nose, while Many Clouds, the 2015 Grand National winner, carried 11st 9lb, the highest victorious weight since Red Rum’s 12st in 1974.

WEIGHTS CARRIED BY LAST 20 WINNERS

The Grand National Horse Race

11ST 9LB Many Clouds (2015)
11ST 6LB Neptune Collonges (2012)
11ST 5LB Don’t Push It (2010)
11ST 1LB Hedgehunter (2005)
11ST 0LB Mon Mome (2009), Ballabriggs (2011)
10ST 12LB Papillon (2000)
10ST 11LB Red Marauder (2001)
10ST 10LB Amberleigh House (2004)
10ST 9LB Comply Or Die (2008)
10ST 8LB Numbersixvalverde (2006), Monty’s Pass (2003)
10ST 7LB Rule The World (2016)
10ST 6LB Silver Birch (2007), Pineau De Re (2014)
10ST 5LB Earth Summit (1998)
10ST 4LB Bindaree (2002)
10ST 3LB Auroras Encore (2013)
10ST 0LB Lord Gyllene (1997), Bobbyjo (1999)

SMALLEST NUMBER OF FINISHERS

Two, in 1928 when 42 started, with Tipperary Tim beating the remounted Billy Barton by a distance. Three finished in both 1913 and 1951. The remounting of horses was banned in all races by the British Horseracing Authority in November, 2009.

MOST FINISHERS

23 in 1984, from 40 starters. There were 22 finishers in 1963, 1987 and 1992.

MOST RUNNERS

66 in 1929, while 57 lined up in 1947. The maximum field size is now 40.

LEAST RUNNERS

10 in 1883

Grand National Greys

Grey WINNERS

Three different grey horses have won the Grand National four times:

• The Lamb (1868 and 1871),
• Nicolaus Silver (1961) and
• Neptune Collonges (2012).

Greys that PLACED RECENTLY

• 1997 Suny Bay (2nd)
• 1998 Suny Bay (2nd)
• 2002 What’s Up Boys (2nd)
• 2002 Kingsmark (4th)
• 2008 King Johns Castle (2nd)

WINNERS (13)

Charity (1841), Miss Mowbray (1852), Anatis (1860), Jealousy (1861), Emblem (1863), Emblematic (1864), Casse Tete (1872), Empress (1880), Zoedone (1883), Frigate (1889), Shannon Lass (1902), Sheila’s Cottage (1948) and Nickel Coin (1951).

PLACED SINCE 1951

Gentle Moya (2nd 1956), Tiberetta (3rd 1957, 2nd 1958 & 4th 1959), Miss Hunter (3rd 1970), Eyecatcher (3rd 1976 and 1977), Auntie Dot (3rd 1991), Ebony Jane (4th 1994) and Dubacilla (4th 1995).

Grand National Lengths

The Grand National race is 4 miles, 2 ½ furlongs.

SHORTEST WINNING DISTANCE

Neptune Collonges by a nose from Sunnyhillboy in 2012.

FURTHEST WINNING DISTANCE

A distance – Cloister (1893), Covertcoat (1913), Shaun Splash (1921), Tipperary Tim (1928), Mr What (1958) and Red Marauder (2001).

Grand National Running Times

FASTEST Grand National Time

Mr Frisk (1990) 8m 47.8s.

SLOWEST Grand National Time

Lottery (1839) 14m 53s.

MOST COMMON WINNING AGE

Nine-year-olds have won 45 of the 169 runnings of the Grand National where the winner’s age was recorded. The best recent record is by 11-year-olds, accounting for three of the last five winners – Neptune Collonges (2012), Auroras Encore (2013) and Pineau De Re (2014).

OLDEST WINNER

Peter Simple (1853), aged 15.

YOUNGEST WINNER

Alcibiade (1865), Regal (1876), Austerlitz (1877), Empress (1880) and Lutteur III (1909) were all aged five. Since 2012, only seven-yearolds and upwards can take part.

WINNING AGES IN THE LAST 30 RUNNINGS

• 8-Y-O (3 winners) Party Politics (1992), Bindaree (2002) and Many Clouds (2015).
• 9-Y-O (9 winners) West Tip (1986), Rhyme ‘N’ Reason (1988), Lord Gyllene (1997), Bobbyjo (1999), Papillon (2000), Hedgehunter (2005), Comply Or Die (2008), Mon Mome (2009) and Rule The World (2016).
• 10-Y-O (7 winners) Rough Quest (1996), Earth Summit (1998), Monty’s Pass (2003), Numbersixvalverde (2006), Silver Birch (2007), Don’t Push It (2010) and Ballabriggs (2011).
• 11-Y-O (8 winners) Maori Venture (1987), Mr Frisk (1990), Seagram (1991), Miinnehoma (1994), Red Marauder (2001), Neptune Collonges (2012), Auroras Encore (2013) and Pineau De Re (2014).
• 12-Y-O (3 winners) Little Polveir (1989), Royal Athlete (1995) and Amberleigh House (2004).

Known as the world’s greatest steeplechase, the Grand National is popular with both horse racing lovers and those that only watch this one race every year. The incredibly difficult jumps combined with the length of the race makes it a thrilling watch, with horses likely to fall at any moment. The proof of that lies in Foinavon’s win in 1967, running so far behind the rest of the field that he avoided a mass pile-up and won the race.

Had you been one of the horse’s backers that year then you’d have been paid out at odds of 100/1, with punters ever since having a ‘cheeky’ bet on a horse with outside chances simply on the off chance that something as dramatic happens at Aintree Racecourse. Whilst it’s rare for such an incredibly unlikely thing to take place, bettors still enjoy the possibility of an outsider winning and, along with the favourites doing so, it’s happened more than once.

The Longest Odds Winners

Where else to start but with the winners of the race that have had the longest odds? It is, after all, the most exciting aspect of horse racing and the one that non-racing lovers tend to watch the Grand National for. Here we’ll have a look at the five horses with the longest odds to win the race, all 100/1, collating the information into a table and then having a brief look at each event in more detail to see if we can spot any sort of pattern.

100/1 Grand National Winners

The good news for the bookies is that no horse has ever won the Grand National with odds of longer than 100/1. That might change at some point in the future, of course, but it’s unlikely. Something to bear in mind if you tend to opt for the betting tactic of picking one short odds horse, one with middling odds and one outsider. If they are that outside of the expected running that they’re over 100/1 then you might want to look elsewhere.

Whilst we can’t learn much from the ages of the horses that won the race as 100/1 outsiders, given that they differ across the board, perhaps the overall story of their winning race can tell us a little bit more about what we want to know. Are there any similarities in what happened during the race, or was it just a matter of the bookmakers getting their odds wrong in most instances? Certainly the looked to learn their lesson after 100/1 winners in both 1928 and 1929…

1928 – Tipperary Tim

Prior to 1928, there had been a number of outsiders that had won the race. Many of them had strange odds, though, such as Lutteur III, who won 1909 at odds of 100/9. Tipperary Tim was the first horse to give the bookies a genuine spanking, though. The Going was Heavy and mist had descended upon Aintree Racecourse during the day, which understandably led to some difficulties in jumping the fences.

Before the race a friend of Tipperary Tim’s amateur jockey, William Dutton, reportedly told him that he’d only win if all of the other horses failed. Little did the friend realise just how prophetic that shout would be. On the first time around the course, Easter Hero fell at the Canal Turn and a mass pile-up ensued. Only seven horses emerged from that with their jockeys still riding, which eventually dropped further until Tipperary Tim was the only one standing.

1929 – Gregalach

Whilst it makes the list here because of the 100/1 outsider that ended up winning the race, the 1929 renewal of the Grand National also made the record books for boasting the largest ever field to run in the event. Sixty-six horses went under starter’s orders, which has never been beaten. In truth, nothing quite as dramatic as the previous year happened this time around, though a vast majority of the horses did fall at some point during the race.

Indeed, the press was full of criticism after the fact because, they claimed, the nature of the Grand National meant that poor horses would often be entered into it. With nine horses finishing the race, however, there wasn’t the same issue as there’d been in 1928. The press’s argument also fell short on account of the fact that the winner had odds of 100/1, fourth place was 200/1 and so were to of the other horses that managed to make it all the way home.

1947 – Caughoo

Interestingly, fifty-seven horses started the Grand National in 1947, which was the largest field since the record was set in 1929. All of them returned to the stables safely after the race, suggesting that it was another one without any major drama. Eight-year-old Caughoo ended up winning the event, finishing twenty lengths in front of second-placed Lough Conn. The Irish horse was a firm outsider, ridden by Eddie Dempsey and tried by Herbert McDowell.

The other interesting thing about the 1947 renewal of the Grand National was that three of the first four horses home were from Ireland. Lough Conn had odds of 33/1, which was the same odds given to the French horse, Kami, that finished third. Prince Regent was the best-priced of them all with odds of 8/1 but could only come in fourth. Given that they all had similar weights apart from Prince Regent, it looks like this was just a case of the handicapper getting it wrong.

1967 – Foinavon

The victory for Foinavon in 1967 remains one of the most talked about in Grand National history. It’s unusual that a horse would win the race because they weren’t very fast, but that’s exactly what happened here. Foinavon was nowhere near the leaders as they approached the twenty-third fence. Having unseated his rider at the first, many felt that Popham Down should have been pulled up by then but the fact that he wasn’t led to one of the race’s greatest moments.

The loose horse veered at the fence, causing a huge pile-up and unseating countless horses. Foinavon was so far behind the pack that the horse’s jockey was able to steer him through the melee, emerging free from everyone and with a thirty length lead. It shows just how unfancied he was that he ended up winning by half that amount. Even so, a win is a win and John Buckingham’s riding of the 100/1 outsider is to be admired.

Mon Mome – 2009

At the time of writing, Mon Mome is the most recent horses to win the race with such outrageously long odds. The French-bred horse was ridden by the late Liam Treadwell and beat the 2008 winner, Comply Or Die, by twelve lengths. Trained by Venetia Williams, Mon Mome was the first French horse to win the race in one hundred years, which perhaps helps to explain why the bookmakers got their odds so completely wrong for the horse.

In the end, seventeen horses managed to complete the race. My Will had been made the favourite after coming fifth in the Cheltenham Gold Cup, eventually going off joint-favourite and with Ruby Walsh in the saddle. It was Comply Or Die who gave the toughest chase, though, and the he and Mon Mome jumped the last together. Mon Mome had the better legs, however, and won at odds of 100/1. It was another race in which the bookies just seemed to get it wrong.

Other Big Priced Grand National Winners

Were you to back a horse in the Grand National with odds of 66/1 then you’d be absolutely delighted to see it cross the finish line in first place. When it comes to the winners with the longest odds, though, the likes of Auroras Encore, who achieved exactly that in 2013, doesn’t even come close to the 100/1 mark but a very impressive return nonetheless. Likewise Ayala in 1963 and Russian Hero in 1949, who both won with the same odds, as well as 50/1 Last Suspect in 1985.

Incidentally, the first 33/1 winner came in 2001 when Red Marauder won for Norman Mason and Richard Guest with a further three winners at those odds in quick succession in 2007, 2012 and 2016.

33/1 to 66/1 Grand National Winners

The Shortest Odds Winners

Looking at the races involving horses that won with long odds, it’s fair to say that there’s not a lot that we can learn from them. The horses were different ages, carried different weights and what happened in the race differed from year to year. Unless you believe in the coincidence of two of the races take place in the seventh year of the decade or you feel like you’ll be able to predict a mass pile-up causing half of the horses to fall, it’s unlikely you’ll predict an outsider winning.

Of course, the bookmakers actively prefer it when a horse with long odds win a race. It might seem counter-intuitive, but horses with odds as long as 100/1 will only have a limited number of people betting on them and even then they’ll almost certainly be wagering small stakes. The same is not true for the favourites, which will have large amounts people betting both big and small stakes on them and therefore causing the bookies much more pain with victory.

Here’s a look at the five horses with the shortest odds that came out on top at Aintree Racecourse over the years:

Grand National Winners Under 4/1

The first thing that you’ll notice is that all of the horses in the above table, with the exception of Poethlyn, won the race during the nineteenth century. That isn’t overly helpful to modern day bettors, who will surely want more of a clue about what to look out for when placing bets in the twenty-first century. For that reason, we’ll show you another table here of horses that have won with short odds from 2000 onwards.

List Of Grand National Winners

Shortest Priced Grand National Winners – 2000 to 2019

Tiger Roll is obviously the odd one out on the list, not only because he won it in consecutive years, becoming the first horse since Red Rum to do so, but also because he is the only horse to win with short odds that did so as an eight-year-old. The rest of the horses were nine when they won, which gives you some insight into what to look out for when you’re coming to place your bets. If you want to wager on a horse with short odds, make sure that they’re nine or older.

It’s fair to say that most of the shortest odds winners have a far less interesting story to tell then when it comes to the outsiders who romped home surprisingly. Even so, there’s always a tale to tell for the Grand National and these races are no exception. Here’s a look at each of them:

Tiger Roll – 2019

When Tiger Roll returned to Aintree Racecourse in 2019 he did so as the defending champion of the Grand National. It’s little surprise that he started the race as the favourite, with many believing that he had what it takes to finally join Red Rum as a horse that had won consecutive races on the Liverpool course. One hundred and twelve horses were originally entered before being whittled down to forty, with Tiger Roll coming from the back to win under Davy Russell.

Hedgehunter – 2005

Nine-year-old Hedgehunter was the 7/1 favourite for the race, not least of all because he was being ridden by Ruby Walsh and under the traineeship of Willie Mullins. The race itself was notable thanks to a twenty-five minute delay, which was put in place in order to avoid it clashing with the wedding of Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles. More than half of the horses finished the race, with Hedgehunter finishing fourteen lengths clear of Royal Auclair in second.

Comply Or Die – 2008

Comply Or Die went off as the joint favourite in the race, joined at odds of 7/1 by Cloudy Lane. He repeated the trick of Hedgehunter in being a favourite that won the race; something that wouldn’t happen again at Aintree until Tiger Roll in 2019. When Comply Or Die crossed the finish line he did so just four lengths clear of King John’s Castle, making it a truly thrilling final few moments of the World’s Greatest Steeplechase.

Papillon – 2000

Papillon won the one hundred and fifty-third renewal of the Grand National in the millennial year. He did so with a time of nine minutes and nine point seven seconds, doing so with even more excitement than Comply Or Die would manage eight years later on account of only being one and a half lengths clear of Mely Moss. It was a win for Ruby Walsh, who took the 10/1 horse over the finish line in typical style.

Grand National Horse Race Winners 2920 Winner

Tiger Roll – 2018

Tiger Roll might well have gone off as the favourite when he returned to Aintree the year after winning it, but when Davy Russell rode him across the finish line in 2018 he did so as a 10/1 runner. It was arguably the most exciting race of all of those run by the shortest priced winners, given that Tiger Roll only won courtesy of a photo finish with Pleasant Company. It was another race at Aintree in which all runners returned home safely.