Grand National News

It has often been said that there is almost always a story, sometimes even a fairy story, behind the winner Grand National and, true to form, in 1987, the story was all about Maori Venture and his nongenarian owner, Harry Joel Joel, generally known as ‘Jim’.

Trained in East Hendred near Wantage, Oxfordshire by Andrew Turnell, Maori Venture was a useful performer on his day, as he had demonstrated by winning the valuable Mandarin Chase at Newbury three years previously. However, by the time he lined up at Aintree on April 4, 1987, he was an 11-year-old with a reputation as less-than-fluent jumper. The prevailing ‘good’ going was also thought to be faster than ideal and, consequently, he was sent off at 28/1.

The official racecard of the day nonetheless warned punters that Maori Venture ‘could prove to be a lively outsider’ and, under stable jockey Steven Knight, he did just that. Jumping the final fence, Maori Venture was one of just of three serious challengers, the others being the long-time leader Lean Ar Aghaigh, ridden by 20-year-old Guy Landau, and The Tsarevitch, ridden by John White. From the ‘Elbow’, halfway up the run-in, the trio fought a titanic battle but, well inside the final furlong, Maori Venture took up the running and, surprisingly, sprinted clear to win by five lengths.

Unfortunately, having waited three decades to see his cherished racing colours – black, scarlet cap – carried to victory in the Grand National, Joel, 92, was on holiday in Cape Town, South Africa when Maori Venture passed the post. He did, however, fly back to Britain to greet his returning hero the following. He also announced his intention to bequeath the retiring Maori Venture to Knight in his will.

Described by the ‘Glasgow Herald’ as ‘one of the last of England’s greatest owner-breeders’, Joel inherited the Chiswick Bury Stud, near St. Albans, Hertfordshire, on the death of his father, Isaac ‘Jack’ Joel, in 1940. He famously won the 2,000 Guineas and the Derby with Royal Palace in 1967, before selling the property to the Spanish noblewoman, the Marquesa de Moratalla, in 1978. Joel died on March 23, 1992, aged 97.

The history books record that the 9-year-old New Zealand-bred gelding Moifaa won the 1904 Grand National, thereby becoming the first horse bred outside the British Isles to do so. Moifaa was owned by Spencer Gollan, trained by James Hickey, in Epsom, and ridden by the unheralded Arthur Birch, deputising for the injured Benjamin Ellis. A hard-pulling giant of a horse, who stood 17 hands high, Moifaa was sent off at 25/1 at Aintree but, despite a bad mistake at the fence before Becher’s Brook on the first circuit, was left alone in the lead at the same point on the second circuit, when Dearslayer fell. Thereafter, he was never seriously threatened and came home eight lengths ahead of Kirkland, who would return to Aintree to win the National the following year. As an outsider, Moifaa wouldn’t have been an obvious horse to tip to win the National.

However, the bare facts aside, several popular myths, which have been perpetuated down the years, grew up around Moifaa. Legend has it that, en route from Auckland to Liverpool, the steamship on which Moifaa was being transported was wrecked in the Irish Sea and the horse was lost at sea, presumed dead. Neverless, he turned up alive and well on an unnamed island in the Irish Sea some days later, having purportedly swum, or been carried, 25 or 50 miles to safety and, once recovered, continued his journey to England.

Unfortunately, this story is hokum. Moifaa did travel to England aboard a steamship, SS Marere, but did so without incident; SS Marere was, in fact, sunk by a German U-boat during World War I. The confusion appears to have been caused by the fact another horse that ran in the 1904 Grand National, Kiora, had indeed been shipwrecked, not in the Irish Sea, but in the Atlantic Ocean, off Cape Town, South Africa, some years earlier. Kiora was presumed dead, but had, in fact, escaped the wreck and swum ashore at nearby Mouille Point, from which she was subsequently rescued. Kiora was an early faller in the 1904 Grand National but, in the romanticised version of the tale, the ‘shipwrecked’ horse became the winner, Moifaa.

In a nutshell, yes, he did, with three different horses in as many years. Arguably the greatest racehorse trainer of all time, Michael Vincent O’Brien, generally known by his middle name, excelled under National Hunt rules in the early years of his career. By the time he trained his first winner of the Grand National, Early Mist, in 1953, he had already saddled Cottage Rake to win the Cheltenham Gold Cup three times, in 1948, 1949 and 1950 and Hatton’s Grace to win the Champion Hurdle three times, in 1949, 1950 and 1951. He had also purchased Ballydoyle House, near Cashel, in Co. Tipperary, which he would subsequently establish as the foremost training centre in Ireland.

On March 28, 1953, Early Mist, owned by ‘Mincemeat Joe’ Griffin and ridden Bryan Marshall, made amends for falling at the first fence in the 1952 Grand National by winning ‘very easily, by 20 lengths. Carrying 11st 2lb, the eight-year-old led by 9 lengths at the final fence and only had to be pushed out with hands and heels to draw further away on the run-in. Twelve months later, on March 27, 1954, the same connections won the Grand National again, with the ten-year-old Royal Tan who, like Early Mist, had been notoriously difficult to train. He, too, led over the final fence, but was ultimately all out to hold the rallying Tudor Line by a neck.

Twelve months later still, on March 26, 1955, O’Brien completed his unprecedented hat-trick in the Grand National when Quare Times, a nine-year-old owned by Mrs. Cecily Welman and ridden by Pat Taafe, made light of conditions so testing that the Water Jump was omitted due to waterlogging to win ‘easily’ by 12 lengths. Tudor Line kept on at one pace to finish second for the second year running, while Early Mist and Royal Tan, carrying 12st 3lb and 12st 4lb, respectively, plugged on to finish ninth and twelfth.

The Manifesto Novices’ Chase is a Grade 1 steeplechase run over 2 miles, 3 furlongs and 200 yards on the Mildmay Course at Aintree in early April. As the name suggests, the race is restricted to novice steeplechasers, aged five years and upwards, and is currently scheduled as the first race on the opening day of the three-day Grand National Festival.

The Manifesto Novices’ Chase commemorates Manifesto, who was one of the best, if not the best, Grand National performers of all time. Between 1895 and 1904, Manifesto contested the celebrated steeplechase a record eight times, winning twice, in 1897 and 1899, and finishing in the first four in 1900, 1902, 1903 and 1904; his victory, under 12st 7lb, in 1899 equalled the weight-carrying record for the Grand National.

The Manifesto Novices’ Chase was inaugurated, as a Grade 2 contest, in 2009, before being promoted to Grade 1 status three years later. In its relatively short history, Nicky Henderson and Philip Hobbs have won the race twice apiece and are, jointly, the most successful trainers in its history. The race often features horses that contested the Arkle Challenge Trophy or the Turners Novices’ Chase so, looking ahead to the 2023 renewal – due off at 1.45pm on Thursday, April 7 – those that feature prominently in the ante-post betting for either race merit close consideration.

At this still early stage, the likes of Jonbon (who is trained by Nicky Henderson), Sir Gerhard and El Fabiolo all have the potential to become top-class novice steeplechasers, but the pecking order in the division will, no doubt, become clearer as the National Hunt season unfolds. Reigning champion trainer Paul Nicholls has already gone on the record as being ‘really strong with our novice chasers’, so keep an eye on the likes of Gelino Bello, Monmiral and McFabulous, to name but three.