Chris Cook’s horse-by-horse guide to the 2015 National
2015 race will forever be known as the McCoy Grand National
Memory Lane: a history of the Grand National – in pictures
Email simon.burnton@theguardian.com or tweet @Simon_Burnton
1.45pm BST
Hatwatch latest:
1.43pm BST
If you’re in the market for one more Grand National tip, here you go:
One night in Milan for the national #GrandNational pic.twitter.com/p9I62IaApT
1.42pm BST
So, just to complete the formalities:
1 Nichols Canyon (R Walsh) 3-1 Fav
2 Parlour Games (A P McCoy) 4-1
3 Three Musketeers (Harry Skelton) 7-1
12 ran
Also: 10-1 Sub Lieutenant 4th
1.39pm BST
Willie Mullins, the trainer:
I didn’t expect him to do that. I thought his coat had gone a little bit, thought he could go flat today. I told Ruby, we’d do what we did at Leopardstown and forget about Cheltenham.
1.38pm BST
Here’s (some of) what Ruby Walsh said afterwards:
It’s a great game, isn’t it. Ups, downs, ups, downs, that’s just the way it is. This horse nailed it today. It was just too keen at Cheltenham. Jumped like a bunny. It’s great to get back on track, and it’s great to win.
1.36pm BST
Ruby Walsh rides Nichols Canyon to victory by some five lengths, from Parlour Games. Seedling, meanwhile, has stayed down after falling at the penultimate fence.
1.35pm BST
And here comes Parlour Games! Seedling has fallen at the penultimate fence, and Parlour Games is now second, behind Nichols Canyon!
1.34pm BST
Ten runners in a bunch, still led by Ballybolley, with McCoy and Parlour Games at the back. Two jumps to go.
1.33pm BST
Ballybolley still in front. If your money is on Grand Partner, go get yourself a drink – it’s been dropped by the field.
1.32pm BST
A faller! Jake Greenall has come off Go West Young Man!
1.32pm BST
So the front three as it stands: Ballybolley, by a couple of lengths, with Mister Fizz second and McKinley.
1.31pm BST
McCoy is right at the back of the field on Parlour Games. It’s a marathon not a sprint, etc and so forth.
1.31pm BST
Ballybolley is the early leader, from Mister Fizz.
1.30pm BST
And they’re off!
1.30pm BST
The runners just getting ready for the 1.30, the wind whipping the jockeys’ shirts. Action very much imminent.
1.23pm BST
Here’s Chris Cook’s race preview. AP McCoy rides Parlour Games in this one, incidentally:
1.30 The eye is drawn first to As De Mee, not least because Paul Nicholls has had such a great week in the Grade One races, but it is just the mildest of concerns that his two best efforts have come at Sandown and he has to prove himself in these rather different conditions at the end of a busy novice season. Seedling should be fresher, having not raced for three months before unseating at the Cheltenham Festival. His early-season form stands comparison with anything else on offer and he appeals as the type to enjoy this drier surface.
1.21pm BST
The World Famous JUST EAT Mersey Novices’ Hurdle is the first race of the day. Two miles four furlongs of fun, coming up in about 10 minutes.
1.14pm BST
It’s a bit breezy up at Aintree today, which has opened the door to all sorts of hilarious hold-on-to-your-hats photographs.
1.05pm BST
Hello world!
So, the racing begins at 1.30 and the last of the day’s seven races at Aintree goes off at 5.40, and there’s a great big bag of excitement for us to open and rummage through between now and then. The Racing Post reports that the going over hurdles is now good, good to soft in places (from good to soft, good in places). Which is nice (nice to really great in places).
1.02pm BST
Okay, that’s all from me and as they approach the Melling Road … well actually as they rest in their stables unaware of what they will be asked to until a couple of hours from now, I’m going to hand you over to Simon Burnton. Good luck and best wishes to all those taking part in the greatest race in the world.
12.58pm BST
A going concern? Here’s a breakdown of the official going for the Grand National since back in 1971 when Specify won.
If the National going remains good to soft, good in places, it would mark a break from the norm: #GrandNational pic.twitter.com/UpSw4xYLTJ
12.54pm BST
In 1997 we decided to have another Grand National party. We haven’t bothered since.
12.48pm BST
Chris Cook reports from Aintree on the latest thoughts about who will start favourite for today’s Grand National:
Despite all our weeks of Tony McCoy-related chatter, it is not yet clear that his mount, Shutthefrontdoor, will start favourite for today’s Grand National. Bookmakers have so far been happy to take him on and you can get 8-1, whereas the horse was 7-1 across the board in recent days. Rocky Creek is just one point bigger at 9-1, having been well tipped in this morning’s papers.
12.45pm BST
One thing we definitely do not want today is a false start. If the runners have failed to go on their first attempt when they are now required to jig-jog towards the tape then they will have to start from a standing start and that may prove troublesome for some.
Back in 1993 my wife and I decided to have a Grand National party at our house and invite friends and family. This is what happened next …
12.40pm BST
Have you made up your mind which horse to bet on?
Bookmakers Coral have released a list of the top ten best-backed Grand National horses as at 11.45am, according to the number of bets placed on each of the 39 runners in the firm’s 1,800 betting shops, and Shutthefrontdoor is at the top of the list.
12.36pm BST
The management at Aintree are taking no chances with the drying conditions and are watering before the Grand National gets under way today.
Andrew Tulloch of @AintreeRaces: "We are putting a couple of mm of water on the #GrandNational course at fences 13 & 14 for consistency."
12.32pm BST
In 1983, when I was an impoverished student, I went to the Grand National for the first time. I won the BBC-TV competition for a package that included an overnight stay at the Adelphi Hotel, champagne lunch, a pair of Grandstand tickets and a chance to meet some of the greats prior to the meeting. I didn’t back the winner, which was Corbiere, who was trained by the first female trainer to win the National, Jenny Pitman.
I think it will be difficult to spot me (or my old man who went along as well) as the late Julian Wilson introduces the highlights by stating: “This was the year when everyone, public and professional alike, were asked - is it worth keeping the Grand National alive?” It’s easy to forget that not so long ago the National was in serious danger of not surviving into the 21st century.
12.18pm BST
Here’s a clearer picture of ‘McCoy’s’, the new watering hole at Aintree
A seemingly relaxed @AP_McCoy opens the newly-named McCoy's Bar @AintreeRaces this afternoon #GrandNational pic.twitter.com/U3hi5JOBv0
12.09pm BST
Tony McCoy is famously teetotal but there are bars named after great horses all over the country and Aintree are opening one in honour of the great man. What is AP’s tipple?
AP opening his bar! pic.twitter.com/VMNyqiEru4
12.07pm BST
Shame on the Liverpool Hilton Hotel. They were charging Daily Mail tipster Sam Turner £3 for a Racing Post this morning (that’s 50p dearer than in the shops)
Do love Liverpool, but the Hilton's decision to try and charge £3 for today's @RacingPost is a bit below the belt
12.04pm BST
After Foinavon, the next National I remember vividly was Red Rum’s first win in 1973. It was memorable for being the first time I had a bet on the race and I won money. Now I can hardly bring myself to watch the race - Grey Sombrero, one of my favourite horses, suffered a fatal fall and Crisp, who my dad later revealed he had backed, was caught in the dying strides after leading all the way and jumping the fearsome fences as if they were hurdles. The runner-up put up arguably the most remarkable display in Grand National history and if ever a horse deserved to win a race it was Crisp that day.
11.56am BST
And Mr Cook has the latest news direct from Aintree
Spring always seems a painful time for some jump jockeys, perhaps because drying ground has less give in it when you have a tumble. Joshua Moore is the latest to have suffered a bone break, in his fall on Sire De Grugy here at Aintree on Friday.
11.55am BST
Talking of that man Cook, here’s his guide from the track on horses to be wary of in the National - and that includes those who ran well in the race the previous year:
Every year, one temptation with the Grand National is to look at the horses that ran well the previous year and try to make a case for them taking this year’s prize. But this has been anything but a sure route to profit in recent decades and in fact you’d be better off looking for the winner among the horses that lost their jockey at some point the previous year.
11.46am BST
Here’s why you should be reading our Talking Horses blog each day. Chris Cook highlighted the odds of 20-1 on Shutthefrontdoor and the fact that Tony McCoy would be riding the beast before anyone else on 10 February. Hope you got on!
Related: Talking Horses: Who will Tony McCoy ride in the Grand National?
11.35am BST
Jockey news from the track as Joshua Moore is replaced on his mounts this afternoon
Joshua Moore stood down today. Leighton Aspell will ride Traffic Fluide in 2.05pm & Tom Cannon will ride Vino Griego in 3.25pm at Aintree
11.32am BST
I’ve already had a neighbour (hello Jan Mckay at No36) querying about a sweepstake down our road. I’m directing Jan, and everyone else, here to the Guardian online sweep. It’s easy to download and use and it’s not too late to get your work colleagues, friends, enemies or nearest and dearest involved. You can find it via this link here.
11.26am BST
An aside here (for devoted racing fans only). Which horse has put up the best chasing performance of the year? There’ll be plenty of candidates - Coneygree, Silviniaco Conti, Vautour etc. Well, the respected ratings organisation Timeform have given their highest rating of the season to Don Cossack, who won the Melling Chase at Aintree yesterday by 26 lengths.
New @Timeform1948 rating for Don Cossack following his romp at Aintree yesterday is c180 - now highest-rated chaser in training.
11.21am BST
The Grand National has an amazing history of course. This was the first one I can remember. And I recall the BBC showing the race the next day again on Sunday such was the extraordinary nature of the 1967 race, the ‘Foinavon’ National. “And now it’s over to Michael O’Hehir...”
11.13am BST
Fergus Wilson, the owner of Grand National runner River Choice, runs no-hopers in the big races. That has been controversial enough in the racing world. He and his wife are also Britain’s most controversial landlords, whose property empire extends to nearly 1,000 homes in Kent. In 2014 they began evicting families with more than two children, banned tenants on zero-hours contracts and threw out extended families where the grandmother comes to stay. You can read all about Mr Wilson here.
Meanwhile, here is River Choice, oblivious to all the controversy and enjoying a munch of grass ahead of his run in the big race this afternoon.
River Choice out for some fresh air this morning @AintreeRaces @davidcottin #GrandNational pic.twitter.com/RkSQdXblnN
11.05am BST
Our racing correspondent is at the track and posts his scene-setter ahead of today’s action at Aintree
There was a light sprinkling of rain at Aintree this morning to replace the clear blue skies for the first two days of the Grand National meeting, but the forecast is dry and the going remains good-to-soft, good in places ahead of a race that could prove to be one of the most memorable in the National’s long history.
11.02am BST
There are other ways to find the winner than following our sage correspondent’s advice. There’s always Mystic Meg :-/
Do you want a fun way to pick your Grand National horse? Have a play with Mystic Meg's Horse Selector ➥ http://t.co/KlfQG3Kz0Z
10.59am BST
10.55am BST
It’s one of the big questions ahead of the National with the horse likely to go off very short for an Aintree favourite given that Tony McCoy will be doing the steering. Wiliam Hill were offering 10-1 early doors but if you fancy a bet on the Jonjo O’Neill-trained runner have one now as he is currently 8-1 and the expectation is he will go off around 11-2 or 5-1.
@tony_calvin think it will go off about 5 or 11-2 on course.
10.51am BST
For those jockeys today who need fattening up before they go out to ride Sally Ann Grassick has made the now traditional delivery to the weighing (!) room at Aintree
Annual delivery of pre Grand National @krispykreme doughnuts to @AintreeRaces weigh room #ourgrandestteam pic.twitter.com/v6K9CSuykP
10.43am BST
There’s only one story in town (though potentially there are many) for the 2015 running and with the great AP McCoy stating he will retire if he wins the Grand National on Shutthefrontdoor today all eyes are on the remarkable jockey. He told Karthi Gnanasegaram on the Radio 4 Today programme this morning that he won’t be thinking too much about the race until much nearer the off and it’s clear he’s chilling out as he’s just posted this via Twitter.
Thanks for all the good luck messages especially the 1 from this little man pic.twitter.com/VnAJjeZc8W
10.38am BST
It’s not too late for a good study of the runners and I can recommend colleague Chris Cook’s in-depth guide to every horse in the National today. You can read his thoughts or even watch him on our video special by clicking here.
Related: Grand National 2015: horse-by-horse guide to all the runners
10.35am BST
More fallers this year?
Since the modifications to the fences there have been fewer fallers but there were plenty of casualties in the Topham Chase over the the National obstacles yesterday. There’s some speculation that they’ve been made a bit tighter this year. Last year Pineau De Re got away with mistakes and still won. This year you might want to be looking at safe jumpers among the 39-strong field.
Good luck today @gcunning12. Suspect changes have been made to GN fences since last year. Spruce seems much more resilient. Thoughts?
10.30am BST
Hello and welcome to the greatest day of the racing year bar none. It’s the Grand National, the event that transcends the sport. Everyone has their own idea of what is going to win and most people will have a wager on this one day.
Personally, I loved the days before chief handicapper Phil Smith became “The Tinkerman”, started fiddling with the weights and we started to get 100-1 winners again. It’s not such a hot betting medium for me these days but I’m pinning my hopes on Rocky Creek. There’s still some 10-1 available if you shop around. You can see the latest odds from all the bookies here via the Oddschecker site.
10.02am BST
News from Chris on Lord Windermere’s jockey:
Brian O’Connell has been named as Lord Windermere’s jockey for today’s Grand National, replacing Robbie McNamara, who was badly injured in a fall at Wexford on Friday. O’Connell is not well known in Britain but has won six Grade One races in Ireland, starting in 2009 with Dunguib and peaking with Last Instalment in last year’s Hennessy Gold Cup at Leopardstown, the Irish equivalent of the Cheltenham Gold Cup.
O’Connell has had two previous rides in the National, finishing eighth on Tharawaat in 2012 and pulling up on Quito De La Roque last year. Neither was well fancied and, while Lord Windermere is a 50-1 shot, the horse won last year’s Cheltenham Gold Cup and is a potentially exciting ride, if the unique National fences revive his enthusiasm.
Related: Grand National 2015: horse-by-horse guide to all the runners
10.01am BST
This from Chris Cook:
Aintree has reported increased attendance for each of the first two days of the Grand National meeting. Friday’s Ladies Day crowd of 45,078 was up 6% on last year, following a 4% increase to 34,752 which was a new record for the Thursday card.
Both days benefited from warm, dry spring weather. Today’s sky is overcast and rain has fallen but this crowd will be the least weather-affected of the three; Grand National day is a sellout with more than 70,000 expected.
9.52am BST
Good morning and welcome to our liveblog from Grand National Day, writes Chris Cook. First things first: the latest from the track: the going on the Grand National course is described as ‘Good to Soft, Good in places’, the track having been watered with 2mm to 3mm after Friday’s racing and 2.2mm of rain has fallen during the night. There might still be a bit more rain before the Grand National at 4.15pm BST but not in the sort of quantity likely to change the going. The official description may be changed, as Andrew Tulloch, the clerk of the course, is due to walk around the track this morning. The going on the hurdles track is the same as for the National course, while the regular steeplechase course is marginally drier at Good, Good to Soft in places.
There are three non-runners on today’s Aintree card, including Carlito Brigante, who was pulled out of the National itself when lameness was discovered on Friday morning. The others are:
1.30pm: Port Melon
5.10pm: Rock On Rocky
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