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Minella Times

admin December 19, 2025

Owned by John P. McManus and trained by Henry De Bromhead in Knockeen, Co. Waterford, Minella Times was retired in February 2023, as a 10-year-old, after sustaining a shoulder injury during preparations for the 2023 Grand National. All told, the Oscar gelding won four of his 24 races over hurdles and fences and amassed £486,876 in prize money.

However, his name is writ large in the annals of Aintree history because, in 2021, not only did he win the Grand National but, in so doing, made Rachael Blackmore the first female jockey in history to win the celebrated steeplechase. Reflecting on her landmark success, Blackmore, who herself retired from racing in May 2025, said, “This is so massive. I had such a beautiful passage around. Minella Times jumped fantastically and didn’t miss a beat anywhere.”

Sent off at 11/1 fourth-favourite in a maximum field of 40 runners, Minella Times was always well-placed and, having made steady headway from midfield early on the second circuit, led narrowly turning from home. Two lengths ahead jumping the final fence, he drew further clear approaching the Elbow, halfway up the run-in, and further still in the closing stages, eventually passing the post 6½ lengths of his stable companion, 100/1 outsider Balko Des Flos. Another McManus-owned horse, Any Second Now, finished third, a further 1¾ lengths away.

Minella Times returned to Aintree for the 2022 Grand National, in which he was set off 9/1 third-favourite, despite racing off a 15lb higher mark than the previous year. There was to be no repeat of his 2021 heroics, though, for he was badly hampered and brought down at Valentine’s Brook on the first circuit. That was, in fact, the third of five non-completions in the final six starts of his career. The 2021 Grand National proved to be his swansong and he was retired to Martinstown Stud in Co. Limerick, which is owned by McManus. His original owner, John Nallen of Hotel Minella in Clonmel, Co. Tipperary, said, “That’s a retirement home I’d love to go there myself if I qualified, if I’d four legs I’d be there in the morning.”

Don’t Push It

admin December 19, 2025

The victory of Don’t Push in the 2010 Grand National was notable for the fact that it was a first for owner John P. McManus, trainer Jonjo O’Neill and, in particular, jockey Tony McCoy. McCoy, who retired in 2015 with a record 4,348 National Hunt winners in Britain and Ireland to his name, was achieving a lifelong ambition after 14 previous unsuccessful attempts. He said afterwards, “The National is the people’s race and to have won it at last is really special.”

The historic win was hardly unexpected, either, with Don’t Push It available at 22/1 in the morning, opening at 20/1 on the course, but being sent off 10/1 joint-favourite in the face of widespread support. Settled in midfield on the first circuit, the 10-year-old made headway early on the second and was one of four horses that went clear approaching the Melling Road for the final time. He loomed alongside the leader, Black Appalachi, approaching the final fence and, although idling briefly on the run-in, stayed on strongly to win by five lengths. State Of Play took a modest third close home, 20 lengths behind the front pair, but three lengths ahead of the fourth horse home, the other 10/1 favourite, Big Fella Thanks.

Bookmaker Paddy Power described the outcome as “probably the worst ever National result”. Aside from the euphoria of saddling his first Grand National winner, O’Neill was also required to explain the apparent improvement in the form of Don’t Push It to the Aintree stewards; the gelding had been pulled up in the Pertemps Final at the Cheltenham Festival on his previous start, having reportedly “appeared to lose interest”.

In 2010/11, Don’t Push It was campaigned exclusively over hurdles, without success, before returning to Aintree for his second attempt in the Grand National. Ridden, once again, by McCoy, he was sent off 9/1 second-favourite, despite top weight of 11 stone 10lb, but could manage no better than a modest third, beaten 2½ lengths and 12 lengths by Ballabriggs and Oscar Time. He ran just once more, when unplaced over hurdles the following November and was retired the following January.

Iroko

admin December 17, 2025

Owned by John P. McManus and trained by Oliver Greenall and Josh Guerriero in Oldcastle, Cheshire, Iroko was sent off 13/2 favourite for the 2025 Grand National and duly finished a staying-on fourth, beaten 7½ lengths by the winner, Nick Rockett. He has since undergone wind surgery and reappeared in a five-runnet graduation chase, over 2 miles and 5½ furlongs, at Haydock in November, in which he finished a rallying second, beaten 2½ lengths, behind the odds-on favourite The Jukebox Man. The winner had won the Kauto Star Novices’ Chase at Kempton the previous Boxing Day and, while the Haydock form has yet to be tested, Iroko nonetheless remains clear 12/1 favourite, ante-post, for the 2026 Grand National.

Three times a winner over hurdles, including the Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle at the 2023 Cheltenham Festival, Iroko remains relatively lightly raced over fences, having made just nine starts over the larger obstacles. The soon-to-be eight-year-old won a novices’ chase at Warwick on his chasing debut in November 2023 and, although winless since, has continued to run to a consistently high level. Of course, the weights for the Grand National aren’t published until February, but Iroko is currently rated 152 by the British Horeracing Authority (BHA), a figure that compares favourably with the 152.6 average rating of the last 10 winners.

Six of the last 10 Grand National were eight-year-olds, too, which adds weight to his cause and it’ll be interesting to see how his season progresses. Following his comeback, trainer Josh Josh Guerriero told the ‘Sporting Life’, “He [Iroko] ran so well, there’s no need to change a lot and Jonjo [O’Neill Jr., his regular jockey] seemed to think he felt better on Saturday than he did last year. He’s had his wind done and he just looked a lot more comfortable and straight.” Guerriero intimated that further runs at Ascot, Cheltenham and Kelso are on the cards for Iroko en route to, as was the case in 2025. Provided the handicapper doesn’t overreact to his previous performance over the National fences and, of course, barring accidents, he must have every chance of chalking up a fourth win for his legendary owner.

I Am Maximus

admin December 17, 2025

Still only a nine-year-old, I Am Maximus has already run in the Grand National twice, winning by 7½ lengths in 2024 and failing by just 2½ lengths to defy top weight of 11st 12lb in 2025, when outpointed by his stable companion Nick Rockett on the run-in. Victory in 2025 would have made him just the second horse in 186 years to win the Grand National more than once and he is, once again, towards the forefront of the ante-post betting for the 2026 renewal, currently quoted at 20/1 co-favourite of three.

I Am Maximus is owned by John P. McManus and trained by Willie Mullins, both of whom are seeking their fourth win in the Grand National, record-breaking and record-equalling, respectively. As such, while he is already rated 170 and the handicapper will, no doubt, take his latest Aintree form into account when the weights for the Grand National are published in February, he remains one to take very seriously indeed.

The winner of the Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse in 2023, as a seven-year-old, I Am Maximus has spent much of his subsequent career – away from Aintree, that is – competing at Grade 1 level against his more illustrious stable companions Galopin Des Champs and Gaelic Warrior. Reflecting on his defeat in the 2025 Grand National, jockey Paul Townend said, “He ran a huge race. Maybe he’d enjoy a bit more ease in the ground, but I can’t have any excuses really. It was just too hard off of topweight.”

It’s worth noting that I Am Maximus has won four times over fences, all on soft or heavy going, although he did win on good to soft over hurdles and lost little caste in defeat on a similar surface in the 2025 Grand National. Underfoot conditions aside, I Am Maximus may need some assistance from Martin Greenwood, the staying chase handicapper at the British Horseracing Authroity (BHA), if he is to win the Grand National again. Since the turn of the twenty-first century, the highest-rated Grand National was Many Clouds, rated 160, in 2015.

Haiti Couleurs

admin December 17, 2025

Haiti Couleurs has yet to tackle the Grand National proper, but has already won the Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse and may yet contest the 2025 Welsh Grand National at Chepstow over Christmas, with trainer Rebecca Curtis warming to the idea of a return to handicap company for her stable star. Aside from the Irish Grand National, the eight-year-old also won the National Hunt Chase at the Cheltenham Festival in 2025 and made a successful reappearance, in a Pertemps Hurdle Series Qualifier, at Newbury in November.

However, Haiti Couleurs did rather blot his copybook when never travelling, and eventually pulled up, in the Betfair Chase at Haydock on his only subsequent start. Nevertheless, Curtis was keen to put a line through that performance, telling the ‘Racing Post’, “You can hear people say, ‘He’s just a handicapper’, but that’s absolute nonsense; it was nothing to do with ability yesterday, it just wasn’t his day.” Indeed, Haiti Couleurs was subsequently diagnosed with a back injury and, having reportedly responded well to treatment, could take in the Welsh Grand National en route to the Cheltenham Gold Cup or the Grand National proper.

At the time of writing, Haiti Couleurs is top-priced at 50/1 for the Cheltenham Gold Cup and 20/1 co-favourite of three for the Grand National, so it’ll be interesting to see how connections plot the remainder of his campaign. He’s currently rated 154 over fences by the British Horseracing Authority (BHA), so a handicap campaign remains a realistic possibility at this early stage. He has winning form at up to 3 miles and 6 furlongs, on ground ranging from good to heavy, so the extra half a mile or so of the Grand National should hold no terrors for him, whatever the weather on Merseyside in the spring.

Indeed, as an eight-year-old with just six starts over regulation fences to his name, of which he has won four, Haiti Couleurs remains open to any amount of improvement. His handicap mark may need to be protected, but he is admirably tough, jumps neatly and may yet prove to be excellent value at the current odds on offer for the Grand National.