The 1973 Grand National is remembered not just as a great race, but as a defining moment in the legend of Red Rum. Trained by Ginger McCain, the bay gelding arrived at Aintree with solid form but little to suggest the extraordinary career that awaited him. That all changed over four-and-a-half miles on the afternoon of Saturday 31 March 1973.
For much of the race, the brilliant Australian chaser Crisp dominated. Carrying top weight, he bounded into a huge lead, jumping with breathtaking accuracy and rhythm. Red Rum, ridden patiently by Brian Fletcher, stalked the pace from a seemingly impossible distance back, conserving energy while Crisp poured it on from the front.
As they approached the famous Elbow, Crisp still led, but he was tiring under the burden of weight and his lonely front-running. Red Rum, closing with relentless determination, inch by inch reeled him in. In one of the most dramatic finishes ever seen at Aintree, Red Rum collared Crisp in the final strides, winning by three-quarters of a length.
The race launched Red Rum into immortality and is still hailed as the greatest Grand National ever run — a perfect fusion of courage, stamina and heartbreak, with two outstanding horses giving everything to the line.
