The popular belief that bookmakers never lose will be shattered for the second time in less than a month on Saturday evening if Many Clouds, the 8-1 favourite, can emulate the great Red Rum and become the first horse for 42 years to win the Grand National twice.
A series of winning favourites at the Cheltenham festival in March left the betting industry nursing a loss of at least £60m. Bookies would normally see the Grand National as a good chance to get at least some of it back, but victory for Many Clouds would push the industry-wide loss over the last four weeks towards £100m.
“We would estimate our own loss at £5m if he wins,” said Jon Ivan-Duke, a spokesman for William Hill. “Over the industry as a whole, that would equate to about £30m.
“Many Clouds is a horse that many people know and remember from last year, and he’s popular with racing fans as well because he’s a good horse and has been well backed over the last few months. People are always looking for the next Red Rum in the National, and Many Clouds might just fit the bill.
“He could be the worst result for the bookmakers since Red Rum, or certainly along those sort of lines.”
Red Rum, the winner in 1973, 1974 and 1977, is the only horse in the Grand National’s 177-year history to win the race three times. He finished second in 1975 and 1976. In an earlier age of austerity and economic crisis, a bet on Red Rum was rightly seen as a safe investment.
Red Rum enjoyed worldwide fame by the time of his retirement in 1978, and he subsequently spent many years attending the openings of betting shops, supermarkets and even a rollercoaster – the Steeplechase, on Blackpool Pleasure Beach. After his death in 1995, he was buried next to the winning post at Aintree.
Red Rum owed his celebrity status to his exploits in the world’s most famous race, but also to a back-story that read like a fairytale. He was trained by Ginger McCain, a car dealer from nearby Southport who had dreamed of winning the National since childhood, and exercised on the beach behind McCain’s showroom, where the saltwater seemed to ease a problem with the horse’s hooves.
Many Clouds does not bring quite as much romance to the National, but Leighton Aspell, his jockey, will become the first rider in history to win three consecutive Grand Nationals if they cross the line in front.
On Friday, the Grand National course proved it is still a daunting undertaking for riders and horses alike. Becher’s Brook, the most famous obstacle on the course, claimed the life of a horse for the first time since the fences were modified in response to welfare concerns in 2012. Gullinbursti fell and died instantly in the Topham Steeple Chase, while Minella Reception, who also fell at the fence, was taken to the racecourse stables for further assessment.
The fences at Aintree were rebuilt with soft artificial cores made from plastic birch after two horses suffered fatal injuries in the Grand National in 2012. There have been no deaths from 119 starters in the National in the last three years.
This year’s race will start at 5.15pm, the latest off-time in its history, to ensure that as many punters as possible get a chance to place a bet.
“The Grand National is a race where bookies like to think they will make a good bit of money,” said Simon Clare, of bookmakers Coral. “It’s like Christmas for turkey farmers, really. The Cheltenham Gold Cup [in March] is the second biggest betting race of the year, but we take 12 times as much on the National.
“The difference this year is that we could make record sales and take more on the National than ever before, and yet if Many Clouds wins, he’s the one horse that means we will be paying out more than we take.
“This is the one day of the year when people engage with betting. We spent years trying to persuade some of the once-a-year punters to come back the following week, but we don’t even bother trying any more. A great swath of the British public engage, they want to have a bet on this one day, and then they disappear. That’s how important this race is to bookmakers.”
