Tiger Roll wins the Randox Health Grand National!
Back-to-back Grand Nationals and a place in history pic.twitter.com/vcF6v9JEOL
— ITV Racing (@itvracing) April 6, 2019
Last year, my partner and I went to Aintree to see a horse called Tiger Roll scrape home in the Grand National. He won by a head and if the finishing line had been five yards further , he would not have won at all.
Yesterday we went again. Since Cheltenham we had been putting money on him and the accumulated bet I made on him was the biggest I’ve ever made.
I don’t know why I like Tiger Roll so much but, watching him in the parade ring yesterday I saw a diminutive horse, imperturbable and commanding. What he did on the course was quite remarkable, this is the third major win this horse has had this year and they’ve also included wins over hurdles and cross-country fences.
If he is the people’s champion – he is of the Daley Thompson variety.
After the horse had finished his race , he sauntered good naturedly from interview to interview with jockey Davey Russell. The same calm and unflustered horse as before this four and a half mile epic.
It brought the crowd together. No one cared that this was Michael O’Leary, Giggesdown, Gordon Elliott and the Irish who owned the horse. Yesterday , Tiger Roll belonged to the 70,000 of us who were at Aintree and the 500m who weren’t but who will watch the race.
A word for Aintree – sun – easy drinking – great racing and nothing but smiles
Aintree belles pic.twitter.com/eWaCnHQhOc
— Pension Plowman (@henryhtapper) April 6, 2019
Aintree deserved its once in a lifetime moment and yesterday it got it!
Davy russell, Gordon Elliott and Mrs O’Leary as Tiger Roll returns to the parade ring