by Ben Bradley
When seeing that the favourite Corach Rambler triumphed in the Grand National, there’d be a temptation to assume that the race had been a relatively mundane affair. But anyone who watched the 2023 Grand National will know that it was a race that will live long in the memory.
Despite all the goings-on in the build-up threatening to overshadow the race, there was glory in the end for pre-race favourite in the horse racing betting Corach Rambler, as well as jockey Derek Fox and trainer Lucinda Russell, and nothing should take away from their achievements. But this was a Grand National like no other, so let’s take a look at what made it so memorable.
Pre-race delays
In the days leading up to the race, much was made about the prospect of animal rights protesters causing issues at Aintree, and indeed there were over 100 arrests made on the day of the Grand National as scores of protesters attempted to invade the racecourse.
All this led to the Grand National being indefinitely delayed, as security personnel cleared the area of intruders. The horses, who had been brought out for the traditional pre-race parade, were brought to the paddock, and the longer they were made to wait the more unsettled they became. Finally, the race was able to begin around 15 minutes after it was originally scheduled to.
A chaotic first circuit
It was clear that the delays caused some ill feeling among the horses and jockeys. From the moment the runners made their way to the starting point, it felt as though there were a lot of unsettled mounts, and that proved to be the case, with a plethora of fallers in the first circuit.
It’s not unusual for a handful of horses to fall in the early stages of the Grand National, but the chaotic nature of the stumbles meant the race was blown wide open, with several of the top favourites going down.
The behaviour of the loose horse who had unseated their respective riders also caused issues. With no one to guide them over the jumps, hesitation at some of the fences caused collisions and further falls.
The favourite storms home
Running safely in the midst of the chaos was pre-race favourite Corach Rambler. The Lucinda Russell-trained horse was riding the crest of a wave after securing a second successive win in the Ultima Handicap Chase at the Cheltenham Festival a few weeks earlier, and that’s why many were tipping the nine-year-old for big things at Aintree.
With Derek Fox in the saddle, Corach Rambler managed to steer clear of the fallers and loose horses, before powering clear in the final stages to win comfortably. There were a lot of happy punters around Cheltenham, as Fox and Russell celebrated their second Grand National triumph following One For Arthur’s triumph in 2017. Corach Rambler was the name on everyone’s lips.
“Those guys who went out to protest on course, they think it is about horse welfare,” Russell said after the race. “That horse loves his sport, he loves everything he does. He is kept in the best possible conditions, and I am just so delighted that he can run in a race like that, perform like that, and he has now got greatness. It is what he deserves.”
