King Aiming To Be Youngest Grand National-Winning Trainer In History

[Wandering Eyes]

Connor King, who was twice crowned champion apprentice jockey on the Flat in Ireland, will bid to become the youngest ever trainer to win the Grand National when sending Oscars Brother to Aintree later this spring. 

The 27-year-old handler – who only has two horses at his County Tipperary stable – has admitted he is “trying not to think too much” about the prospect of Oscars Brother being a serious Grand National contender.

The handicapper has given Oscars Brother a 155 rating – a weight of 10st 13lb – after three wins on the bounce in Ireland this season at Galway, Punchestown and Navan. The most recent two victories were in Grade 2 races and the last was in the famous silks of JP McManus, who bought him in December after spotting his huge potential.

After discovering his Randox Grand National weight, King said, “Well, the handicapper's put him up a few pounds! We've just been seeing how he is after the last day, but he's in good form. He needs one more run to qualify. He's in the Brown Advisory at the Cheltenham Festival so we'll have to see – there's a month nearly between the two. He came out of Navan extremely well.”

King added, “I've been training since April 2024 so it's coming up to two years. I'm trying not to think too much about Aintree! I know how good the horse is and it's brilliant to potentially be going up there with a horse for the Grand National and being involved in it.

“I think my first memory of the Grand National would be Hedgehunter falling at the last in 2004, the year before he won it. Mr Hemmings owned him and there was kind of a connection with where I'm from at home with Eugene O'Sullivan, so I kind of remember feeling like it was closer to home than others.”

King was speaking at the official Grand National weights launch on Tuesday where last year's winner, Nick Rockett, was handed a rating of 167.

Nick Rockett was partnered by Patrick Mullins, champion amateur jockey and assistant to his father Willie, to Grand National glory last year. Speaking about the prospects of repeating the trick, the jockey said, “We have no complaints with his weight. We haven't had a clear run with him and he had an over-reach before the John Durkan. He then had a setback just before Christmas, so we're behind where we want to be. He's back riding and we're hoping to get a run into him before Aintree, so we're hoping to find a race for him somewhere. We've no plan for him yet but we should get him there all being well.”

Mullins added, “It's not an ideal preparation having one run but unfortunately those are the cards that we've been dealt with him this year. Maybe going there fresh will help him but it's not ideal, I don't think.”

 

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