London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Oct 07, 2025

Rachael Blackmore is first female jockey to win Grand National, on Minella Times

Rachael Blackmore is first female jockey to win Grand National, on Minella Times

Rachael Blackmore created history when she became the first female jockey to win the Grand National when riding Minella Times to victory

As she has so often over the last few weeks, Rachael Blackmore did everything right here in the Grand National, and with a generous and willing partner in Minella Times and a little racing luck to help her on her way, it was enough to secure the first ever victory by a female jockey in the world’s most famous and demanding race. “I don’t feel male or female,” she said, a few seconds after pulling up. “I don’t even feel human, I feel unbelievable.”

In all, 32 horses with female riders had gone to post for the National before, and only Katie Walsh, who finished third on Seabass in 2012, had finished in the first four. Few had lined up with as strong a chance as Blackmore aboard Minella Times, however, and she seized the opportunity with a polished, impeccable National ride, getting a position and a rhythm while saving ground towards the inside on the first circuit before joining issue towards the head of the field with over a mile still to run.

The outsider Jett had led for much of the way and jumped the Canal Turn for the second time at least 10 lengths clear. Blackmore, though, was poised at the head of the chasing pack, along with Patrick Mullins, on Burrows Saint. Discorama, Balko Des Flos – like the winner, trained by Henry de Bromhead – were also ready to pounce as Cloth Cap, the 11-2 favourite, suddenly dropped away from a prominent position.

Blackmore was able to pick her moment, moving alongside Jett on the run to the second-last before jumping it half-a-length to the good. Another good jump from Minella Times at the last saw her set off towards the Elbow two lengths in front and Minella Times did not falter as Blackmore drove the 11-1 chance on towards a historic success.

Balko Des Flos, at 100-1, was second, giving De Bromhead a 1-2 in the Grand National, 22 days after recording the same feat in the Gold Cup at Cheltenham. Blackmore was on the runner-up there, having picked the wrong one from the trainer’s two starters, but it was the only setback in a brilliant four days which saw her become the first female rider to win the prize for the Cheltenham Festival’s top jockey.

Cheltenham also propelled Blackmore on to the front pages, and secured star status for the 31-year-old rider among the racing and betting public ahead of National Hunt racing’s most storied event. Minella Times was backed to win even before Blackmore had been confirmed as his rider, and millions more arrived on the day from once-a-year punters who were putting their faith in the rider rather than the horse.

Rachael Blackmore and Minella Times (right) jump the Chair on their way to victory.


“I just got such an unbelievable passage through the race,” she said afterwards. “Minella Times just jumped fantastic and brought me from fence to fence. Ruby Walsh and Katie Walsh, I’ve asked them both in the past about riding around here and they often talk about a semi-circle in front of you and I felt like I had that everywhere.

“That is what you need in a race like this, you need so much luck to get around with no one else interfering first of all. You need so much to go right and things went right for me today. I feel so incredibly lucky. It is unbelievable, I’m just so thrilled.”

Blackmore found an ideal path for Minella Times in a race where luck – for both good and ill – can play its part like no other. Mark Walsh, on the well-fancied Any Second Now, was not so fortunate, losing several lengths – perhaps even as many as the eight and a quarter by which he was beaten – when Double Shuffle fell in front of him on the first circuit and almost brought him down. In the circumstances, Any Second Now did exceptionally well to finish third, while another of the market leaders, Burrows Saint, faded from a good position two out to finish fourth.

De Bromhead was the first trainer to saddle the winners of the three biggest races at Cheltenham at the same Festival last month, and he has now added the Grand National to complete an extraordinary, unprecedented grand slam.

“It’s the stuff you dream about,” he said. “I’ve been watching it since I was a kid. I’m just so lucky. She [Blackmore] is brilliant, isn’t she? We’re so lucky to have her, they broke the mould after her.

“She’s tough and brilliant. You can see that [after] she joined us, we have gone from strength to strength with her. She’s a fantastic rider, a great team player and just a lovely person to work with. She’s breaking through all the records.”

The only disappointment on an unforgettable day at Aintree was that the 100,000-strong crowd that would have been at the track to acclaim the winner in normal times was watching the race on TV instead.

In Blackmore, however, racing has found a new icon to draw fans back to the track, and speculation about her likely partner in the National will be a feature of the buildup to the big race for as long as she continues to ride.

She is the superstar the sport needed so urgently after a year with no spectators on the racecourse, and there is every sign that the astonishing chapter which she added to her story aboard Minella Times on Saturday will not be the last.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Three Scientists Awarded Nobel Prize in Medicine for Discovery of Immune Self-Tolerance Mechanism
OpenAI and AMD Forge Landmark AI-Chip Alliance with Equity Option
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
France Names New Government Amid Political Crisis
Trump Stands Firm in Shutdown Showdown and Declares War on Drug Cartels — Turning Crisis into Opportunity
Surge of U.S. Billionaires Transforms London’s Peninsula Apartments into Ultra-Luxury Stronghold
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Jeff Bezos Calls AI Surge a ‘Good’ Bubble, Urges Focus on Lasting Innovation
Japan’s Ruling Party Chooses Sanae Takaichi, Clearing Path to First Female Prime Minister
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Taylor Swift’s ‘Showgirl’ Launch Extends Billion-Dollar Empire
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
FBI Removes Agents Who Kneeled at 2020 Protest, Citing Breach of Professional Conduct
Trump Alleges ‘Triple Sabotage’ at United Nations After Escalator and Teleprompter Failures
Shock in France: 5 Years in Prison for Former President Nicolas Sarkozy
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
BNP Paribas Abandons Ban on 'Controversial Weapons' Financing Amid Europe’s Defence Push
Typhoon Ragasa Leaves Trail of Destruction Across East Asia Before Making Landfall in China
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Big Banks Rebuild in Hong Kong as Deal Volume Surges
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Arnault Denounces Proposed Wealth Tax as Threat to French Economy
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Denmark Investigates Drone Incursion, Does Not Rule Out Russian Involvement
Lilly CEO Warns UK Is ‘Worst Country in Europe’ for Drug Prices, Pulls Back Investment
Nigel Farage Emerges as Central Force in British Politics with Reform UK Surge
×