The Grand National is one of the most famous and iconic races in horse racing, with horses such as Red Rum, Amberleigh House and Many Clouds having won the race. Two of the major attributes required to win this prestigious race are stamina and jumping while the age and weight of the horse are factors in their performance.
The Grand National odds currently have Blaklion as the favourite to win the 2018 Grand National, with the horse, trained by Nigel Twiston Davies having finished fourth in last year’s race. His experience in one of the most challenging races will definitely help Blaklion to be a strong contender this year. Minella Rocco, The Last Samuri and Definitely Red are the next favourites, although Blaklion is still well ahead of them in the odds.
The horses are required to run 4 miles and 514 yards, something that most horses will not have experienced, meaning that horses like Blaklion and the Last Samuri will have a better chance in this year’s race. There is an unpredictability to this race due to the sheer number of horses battling to jump over the fences causing falls, which can affect any horse on the field. Back in 2017’s race, only nineteen of the forty horses finished the course and three of the twenty-one non-finishers fell at a fence.
Ahead of the Grand National we have created the following infographic which shows the important attributes and statistics which turn a race horse into a winner.
