Taking place at Aintree Racecourse on April 9 2011, the 2011 Grand National was the 164th Grand National event. The price money this year totalled £950,000 – an impressive figure when compared to previous years.

This unprecedentedly monetary reward was praised as the largest amount ever given in a steeplechase event and remains so to this day!

This year 19 horses completed the course, measuring a 4 1/2 mile stretch. Many falls happened on the first circuit. Despite the chaotic nature of the race, Ballabriggs outmaneuvered all to give Donald McCain, Jr. his first Grand National win as a trainer, while Jason Maguire came out as the winning jockey onboard. In fact, the Irish-trained Ballabriggs had been coached by Donald father – Ginger McCain – who had clinched a total of 4 victories in similar events.

Owned by Trevor Hemmings, the gallant winner collected a total of £535,135 – a lofty sum outshining anything that had come before it. At the same time, Jason Maguire posted the second-fastest time of 9 minutes and 1.2 seconds. Success upon success!

The winning Ballabriggs/Maguire pair had been a 14/1 shot whose striking performance caught many by surprise. The second and the third places were clinched by Oscar Time/Sam Waley-Cohen(£201,590) and Don’t Push It/Tony McCoy(£100,890).

The 2010 Grand National is, unbelievably, the 163rd time the event has been held, which goes to show how steeped in tradition it is.  Commencing on the 10th of April 2010, the race was again sponsored by John Smith.

Tony McCoy, the racing maverick who gave bookmakers sleepless nights throughout his career, finally clinched the coveted National crown riding  Don’t Push It. Winning by just over five lengths, McCoy successfully resisted the steadily pursuing Black Apalachi who came 2nd and State of the Play who finished 3rd.

Having been significantly backed down a few minutes before the race, McCoy saw his initial 20-1 odds reduced to 10-1`joint-favorite.

The 2010 Grand National drew a huge crowd that stood at 70,000+. More than 150,000 headed to the racecourse over the length of the 3-day meet. The impressive turnout stats make the 2010 event the most well-attended since 2005, when a slightly bigger throng filled Aintree Racecourse.

The following is a list of the top five positions in the 2010 Grand National: First – Don’t Push It/Tony McCoy, the second prize was claimed by Black Apalachi/ Dennis O’Regan, third-position were State of the Play/Paul Moloney. The fourth and fifth positions were occupied by Big Fella Thanks/Barry Geraghty and Hello Bud/Sam Twiston-Davis.

The 2009 Grand National racing meet took place on 4 April 2009 at Aintree Racecourse, England. The 2009 Grand National champion was a long-shot 100/1 outsider Mon Mome – ridden by jockey Liam Treadwell who won the race by a significant 12 lengths and in a time of 9 minutes and 34 seconds. Mon Mome was the very first 100/1 shot to win the race since Foinavon in 1967.

The gallant winner became the first French-bred mount to clinch a Grand National title in more than 100 years. Mon Mome was trained by Venetia Williams at her Herefordshire facility. The proud owner of the victorious horse was Vida Bingham, a little-known breeder from East Sussex.

Only 17 racers completed the course (that measured 4 miles and 4 furlongs) and unfortunately, an ill-fated runner dubbed Hear the Echo collapsed and subsequently died shortly during the Antree National. One of the few jockeys to maintain a good ‘track record’ in two consecutive Grand Nationals, Timmy Murphy’s Comply or Die, the 2008 winner, came second in the 2009 race.

Terrestrial Television aired the Grand National proceedings. The event was widely watched on the BBC, which is sommon especially when big sporing competitions are broadcast live.

Bookmakers were happy that a scarcely anticipated champion had grabbed the jackpot. In the words of Ladbroke’s spokesperson David Williams, a Ruby Walsh’s or Tony McCoy’s victory would have turned the tables way totally. It was a once-in-a-blue-moon boom for scores of betting entities; all thanks to Treadwell’s unlikely success.

The 2008 Grand National took place at Aintree Racecourse in England, on 5 April 2008 and offer combined prize money of around £450,000, a marked drop from previous years.

The 2008 Grand National winner was the longstanding joint-favorite Comply or Die, ridden by gifted and success-focused Irish jockey – Timmy Murphy. Murphy was well known for wanting a National win and so winning here was the realisation of a dream.

Timmy Murphy finihed the race four lengths ahead of the hotly pursuing King John’s Castle who finished second, and the similarly unrelenting chaser – Snowing Morning steered by David Casey. The first three slots were thus occupied by Comply or Die/Timmy Murphy, Kings John’s Castle/ Paul Carberry, Snowy Morning/David Casey.

Timmy Murphy’s victorious horse was owned by David Johnson, a prominent English stable owner and equestrian investor. The trainer was David Pipe.

Most interestingly a total of three riders were marking their thirteenth run. These included Mick Fitzgerald who had won the same title in 1996 riding Rough Quest, Paul Carberry who had achieved top honors in 1999 atop Bobbyjo and also the trailblazing racetrack sensation Tony McCoy.

Richard Dunwoody, a once terrific racer himself, acted as the guest presenter for the BBC coverage. Jim McGrath, the profoundly skilled and experienced veteran commentator wowed millions of anxious watchers, as his trademark thundering beckoned the winner home – for the eleventh consecutive Grand National.