How Does The Irish Grand National Compare To The English National?

So how does the Irish Grand National compare to the English Grand National? Well at BoyleSports we asked a man who has won both!

That man is legendary Irish jockey Paul Carberry who rode Bobbyjo to victory at both Fairyhouse and Aintree for one of the most impressive doubles in National Hunt racing.

Carberry gave us his insight into how the two races compare and one thing that both races have in common.

How The Irish Grand National and English Grand National Compare

There is only one way to compare the English and Irish Grand National

They are different in their own special ways but there is one thing in common - they are both very, very hard to win.

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You think you might have a good horse under you but you’ll end up fifth in the race.

It’s the biggest race in the Irish calendar so it’s always a big occasion at Fairyhouse.

What you need to do to win at Fairyhouse

It is a lovely racecourse to ride at. What you need there is a good horse!

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There is no hiding place there. You need a good horse to win there.

When I won the Irish Grand National, I beat Ruby Walsh and he was only an amateur at the time, a couple of years later he might have beaten me. He took me on three out, I wouldn't have dared do that, but it is a lovely track.

How Big Is The BoyleSports Irish Grand National?

The race has certainly made its way back into the elite level of Irish racing

It definitely is, it is getting the runners now, we have had some big winners in the last couple of years so it is good to see that as well as it isn’t the main guns winning every year.

It is coming back up, especially with the prize money and that will always bring the horses back in.

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Paul Carberry's Irish Grand National Win

Winning on Bobbyjo was one of my biggest achievements

It was very important to me, it was a Bank Holiday Monday as well so the chances of me actually getting to ride Bobbyjo was very slim, as there were meetings over in England, but luckily I got to ride the horse and for my dad as well.

The horse travelled great, jumped super and won very nicely.

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It was a great feeling after that, it was probably one of my biggest wins at that point until I won the English National the next year.

My first ride over fences was actually in the National on a horse that my father trained a few years before.

Why The Lack of English Trained Runners In The BoyleSports Irish Grand National?

Only one English-trained runner in the field - there’s a good reason why

Well the English are probably thinking that if they’re coming over here and beating us, then why would we go over there and get beaten?

The English horses are very good but the trainers probably can’t see them beating our horses over here in Ireland on our turf.

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What Are The Fences Like At Fairyhouse?

There shouldn’t be any issues with the fences at Fairyhouse to catch any riders out

Ballyhack used to be the one that might catch you out a bit as some of the horses couldn’t see the landing side of the fence, but they’ve modified that.

Generally there isn’t one fence that causes issues. I think three or four out as the horses are quickening up can catch a few people out though in the final straight.

Davy Russell Coming Out of Retirement

My body wouldn’t be able to take it! With Davy coming out, it gives the lads there another chance but that’s neither here nor there. Sam [Ewing] was really unlucky to break his arm and Jordan [Gainford] has been injured as well, so Gordon’s lads haven’t had a good run.

Michael O’Leary speaks his mind! What he says is not always right but he likes to get his point across in any case.

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It might have been right Davy coming back, but I don’t know if it was fair on the younger lads not getting the chance to prove themselves. They have to do that at some stage. Would they have done a better job at Cheltenham than Davy? Maybe not but you never know until you try.

Gordon has faith in the young lads, but perhaps doing what he did with Davy may have knocked their confidence a bit. I thought it was the wrong move.

A Jockey's Mentality While Racing

You can overthink it being a jockey - I had no respect for my body

The way that I looked at it [falling] was I would try and put it out of my mind and, basically, have no respect for my body as it is bound to get broken up. Don’t worry about it and whatever happens, happens, and that makes it easy to ride.

You can often overthink it, you just need to have a free mind and just hope that at the end, you’ll overcome it and be OK.

Irish Success At Cheltenham

Cheltenham was a big success for Ireland once again

I thought it was a success, I knew it would be good racing at Cheltenham and that the winners will be spread around a bit, that’s always nice to see.

I thought we had some good racing for the Irish at Cheltenham, it’s not been a disappointment.

Paul Carberry recently previewed the BoyleSports Irish Grand National and gave his tips for the big race at Fairyhouse for what should be a cracking day of racing this Easter Monday.

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