Grand National punters have gone Rachael Blackmore crazy after her big race mount Ain’t That A Shame was the subject of a “staggering” gamble which catapulted him into favouritism for the £1 million prize.
The star jockey, who became the first woman to ride the winner of the world famous race two years ago on Minella Times, rides Ain’t That A Shame for the same Henry de Bromhead stable.
Ain’t That A Shame was a 22-1 chance with William Hill when Blackmore was confirmed on the horse on Wednesday.
He was cut across the board by the bookies on Friday and now heads the market at 8-1 with William Hill and most other firms.
William Hill spokesperson Lee Phelps said: “The ‘Rachael Factor’ is coming into play for punters in the Grand National with the money absolutely flying in for Ain’t That A Shame this morning.
“It’s only Friday but the weight of support is pretty staggering. You see gambles like this in the hours before the race, but it’s rare to get them this early on and if the money continues to pour in, Rachael Blackmore’s ride will go off a good deal shorter than he is now.
“We’ve cut Henry De Bromhead’s gelding from 12-1 into 8-1 and he now sits as joint favourite with Delta Work, while Corach Rambler continues to drift and is out to 10-1.”
Coral were forced to make the same change and spokesperson David Stevens said: “Having made history two years ago when winning on Minella Times, Rachael Blackmore is now arguably the most popular jockey riding when it comes to the Grand National.
“Not only are regular punters fully aware of her talents, many of those having their once a year flutter on the big race this weekend will be backing her, and there's now every chance her mount will start favourite.”
Ain’t That A Shame had been 14-1 with Ladbrokes at the start of the day but is also 8-1 favourite.
Head of PR Nicola McGeady said: “Rachael Blackmore’s army of fans have been out in force and it looks like her mount Ain’t That A Shame is going to go off favourite in the Grand National.
“It’s been backed off the boards all morning, with punters hoping the history-maker can do it again.”
