Minella Times – the horse that Rachael Blackmore made history with when she became the first woman to ride the Grand National winner – has been retired after a setback.
The 10-year-old, coached by Henry de Bromhead, has been primed again for the Aintree spectacle but the problem is so severe that he misses the April deadline and ties have ended his career as a result.
The JP McManus gelding made rapid progress in the 2020-21 season, finishing second in two of the season’s biggest handicaps at Leopardstown before rising to fame on Merseyside.
After amassing 13 pounds for that achievement, he subsequently struggled and fell in last year’s race on the first leg on Valentine’s Day.
View race replay
Unlimited race replays of all British and Irish races
Access to exclusive features for everyone FREE – No monthly subscription fee
Sign in with your existing Sporting Life, Sky Bet or Sky Games account. If you don’t have any of these, it’s complete FREE register!
Not surprisingly, Blackmore will always remember that famous afternoon in Liverpool.
She told Betfair: “This is a day I will never forget. He is such a special horse to many people that he can now enjoy a wonderful, well-deserved retirement at Martinstown (McManus’ stud farm in Ireland). Henry and the whole team at Knockeen did such an incredible job with him and I will always be grateful for that.”
McManus Race Director Frank Berry said: “We were looking forward to taking him to cross-country at Cheltenham and back to the National but he had one mishap – he injured his shoulder.
“He might need an operation to be comfortable in retirement. It’s just disappointing. He gave us a great day. It’s a real shame because Henry was very happy with him and we were looking forward to bringing him back to cross country and national.
“The handicapper hit him really hard because he won the National and he struggled last year but he was falling behind a bit so it’s just unfortunate that he had the accident. Hopefully he will be okay to have a good retirement.
“The season where he won the National Henry had him in great form, he had two great performances at Leopardstown before Aintree and everything went smoothly there. He got a great ride from Rachael that day and it was a day none of us will ever forget.”
More from Sporting Life
Play safer
We are committed to safer gambling. Recommended bets are recommended for those over the age of 18 and we strongly encourage readers to only wager what they can afford to lose.
If you are concerned about your gambling please contact the National Gambling Helpline / GamCare on 0808 8020 133.
For more support and information, see begambleaware.org And Gambling Therapy.org.
