‘Housewives choice’ Ruby Walsh has announced that he is to partner the Willie Mullins-trained On His Own in the forthcoming John Smith’s Grand National at Aintree on April 14, putting an end to furious speculation as to which horse the hugely popular Irish jockey would ride in the event due to be screened live across the globe to more than 600 million television viewers, writes Elliot Slater.
Walsh, who won the ‘world’s greatest steeplechase’ on the Mullins-trained Hedgehunter in 2005, had been expected to partner another Mullins horse Prince de Beauchene, the long-time ante-post favourite for the Aintree marathon, which is one of the most popular horse betting events in the world. But when the Graham Wylie-owned chaser met with a setback last week a host of other mounts were left for the stylish jockey to consider.
Now the stable jockey to both British champion jumps trainer Paul Nicholls and Irish champion jumps trainer Willie Mullins, has opted to partner the latter’s On His Own, a horse also owned by Graham Wylie who was impressive when winning last time out at Gowran Park in January, beating Tullintain by 13-lengths in the prestigious Goffs Thyestes Chase. Walsh’s choice seems sure to shake up the betting markets for the big race, the most immediate reaction being the cutting from 20/1 in the Grand National odds to a top priced 16/1 (now 12/1 in places), about On His Own carrying off the four-and-a-half-mile showcase contest.
Walsh’s decision will almost certainly mean that other riders can now be booked for those other horses that he had been considering, most notably his father’s Seabass, who will almost certainly be partnered by Walsh’s sister Katie, giving the high-profile lady rider one of the best chances ever for a female jockey to carry off the prize with Seabass generally no bigger than 14/1 and amongst the top six in most betting lists.
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