Harry Redknapp heartbreak as Grand National rule change ruins dream of winning £500,000 with ‘incredible’ horse

1 month ago 38

A NEW Grand National rule change for this year looks to have ruined Harry Redknapp’s dream of winning the race.

The legendary football boss thought he had a chance of sneaking in the £1million Aintree feature with his Cheltenham Festival superstar Shakem Up’Arry.

Named after a West Ham fan, Redknapp went crazy celebrating the horse’s victory in the Plate Handicap Chase earlier this month.

And it looked like all roads would lead to a tilt at the National on April 13.

But, while the horse will still be in Merseyside that weekend, trainer Ben Pauling said he is now more likely to go for the Topham Chase instead.

The race is also run over the famous National fences but just the 2m5f trip instead of the 4m2f of the National.

There is also a massive gulf in prize money, with the National worth £500,000 to the winner and the Topham, which is run the day before on Friday, April 12, just over £84,000 – a difference of £416,000.

Shakem Up’Arry looks to have fallen foul of a new Grand National rule introduced for this year.

Bosses have slashed the number of runners from 40 to 34 as part of a number of measures to make the world’s most famous race safer.

Pauling said if the old 40-runner rule would have been in place then Shakem Up’Arry – who is 44th on the list of runners – would probably have got in.

But the aim is likely now going to be the Topham, for which he is a 14-1 chance rather than the bigger 66-1 available for the National.

Pauling told the Racing Post: “He’ll go in one of them at Aintree because he’s made for those races over the fences.

“He’s 44th in the weights for the National and last year he would have been sitting pretty, but it seems unlikely he’ll go there.

“He’s brilliant and he’s in absolutely incredible form. I never want to jump ship whenever I like a horse and I’ve always thought he could be a proper one.

“He’s now rated 149, and in my eyes that’s a very nice horse – he’s what I expected him to be. He’s got a great attitude and he jumps for fun.”

Punters are set for the biggest Grand National win this century if red-hot favourite Corach Rambler defends his crown.

The superstar chaser has been backed from 14-1 into 4-1 and looks well-in on his recent Gold Cup third.

Spokesperson for William Hill, Lee Phelps, said: “Corach Rambler’s run in the Gold Cup looked a perfect prep for his defence of the Grand National, and our customers agree as he has been absolutely hammered in the betting since the run at Cheltenham.

“He wasn’t a bad result prior to that, but the weight of money in the last couple of weeks has been so significant that he’d be the worst ante-post result this century.

“At this stage, we would take anything to beat him, but the way the money is going suggests he’s going to be incredibly hard to beat.”