The Grand National is a horse racing event that started in 1839 in Aintree Racecourse, England. That is exactly 181 years ago. This event is one of the most famous horse racing events in Europe. The race is very popular in the British culture, and many fans go the extra mile to wager on their favorite horses. In recent times, fans even make bets online with the best Grand National Odds Sportsbet and odds on many other online bookmakers.

 

The Virtual Grand National is a virtual form of the real Grand National which tries to predict what the scores for the Grand National will be. While the real Grand National involves real people and real horses, the virtual form only tries to replicate this real event. It is shown on TV and riders are seen riding horses even though the real ones are still in the comfort of their homes.  The virtual grand national started in 2017 and was shown before the main Grand National.

 

This year, for the first time in 181 years, the real grand national will not be taking place. The Virtual grand national took its place as the pandemic prevented anyone from stepping out of their houses and engaging in social activities.  This means that the only grand national event that will hold this season is the Virtual one which has been done successfully.

 

It was held on Saturday, April 4th. About 40 horses raced that day. Some of these horses are Tiger Roll, Aso, Alpha Des Obeaux, Anibale Fly, Bristol De Mai, e.t.c. Here are the horses that emerged as top five:

•       Potters Corner
•       Walk-In The Mill
•       Any Second Now
•       Tiger Roll
•       Burrows Saint

 

Potters Corner emerged winner of this year’s Virtual Grand National. The horse was raced by Jack Tudor.

 

The Virtual Grand National has always been a game that predicted the scores of the actual grand national. Sometimes, the winner of the grand national and its virtual form are different, but there is always a close relationship between the top five of both games. In 2018, the virtual race while the real race was won by the same horse, Tiger Roll. But In 2019, the Virtual Grand National produced a different result from that of the Grand National. It, however, was able to predict three of the first five horses and Tiger Roll who came first in the real race came third in the virtual race.

 

Apart from being the only version of the race that took place, this year’s Virtual Grand National stood out because of the funds donated to the NHS as a charity. NHS was the highest winner of the Virtual Grand National, 2020. Every bookmaker donated profits to the NHS, and over £1,000,000 was raised. People were encouraged to also donate some part of their winnings or all the winnings they get from the race.

 

Other Horse racing organizers following the success of Virtual Grand National have started their own virtual races. One of such is the Kentucky Derby: Triple Crown showdown in the US. There are a couple of others too. Suddenly, the impossible is now made possible through the use of technological advancement.

 

This year’s game has indeed made other virtual grand Nationals from 2017 down to 2019 look like a testing ground for a time like this. Even though it could only happen virtually, the game was real and exciting. It will surely be one of the events that will be added to the important Grand National memories.

 

 

 

Due to the health risk that the Coronavirus pandemic poses, the 146th Kentucky Derby was postponed in March. Hence, instead of May 2, this year’s Run for the Roses will push through on the first Saturday of September at Louisville, Kentucky USA.

The announcement of the new schedule for this big event brought back the excitement of horse racing fans and enthusiasts to pick the best colt and place their bets. With 20 horses running at the Churchill Downs, the following horses are the top contenders who might have what it takes to be this year’s Kentucky Derby champ.

Tiz the Law

The top 1 of 2020 Kentucky Derby leaderboard with 320 points, Tiz the Law once again showed outstanding performance during the 2020 Runhappy Travers Stakes (Grade I). He defeated the hopeful contenders who ran at Saratoga Race Course for this event and became the “Midsummer Derby” champion, running a distance of 1¼ Miles.

Prior to this success, Tiz also finished first during Belmont Stakes on June 20, 2020, and Curlin Florida Derby on March 28, 2020. On top of that, his victory on the Holy Bull Stakes last February 1 and 2019 Champagne Stakes made him the early favourite for this year’s run for the roses.

With all his winning races, there’s no doubt why this Sackatoga Stable-owned colt, trained by Barclay Tagg, is one of the racehorses to watch out for on the first Saturday of September at Churchill Downs.

Authentic

Conditioned by the famous Bob Baffert, Authentic won the 53rd Haskell Stakes (Grade I) at Monmouth Park on July 18, 2020. Along with this, his victories on San Felipe Stakes and Sham Stakes earlier this year made him climb up the second-highest spot of today’s Kentucky Derby point standings.

Baffert believes that the high-class speed of Authentic, with serious preparations and training, will lead him to win the 146th run for the roses on September 5. With that, horse racing fans and experts also look forward to seeing this colt finish first towards the end line at the Churchill Downs racecourse.

Art Collector

Having a total of 150 qualifying points and $476,461 non-restricted stake earnings, Art Collector is among the most outstanding Kentucky Derby horses for 2020. Under the watchful eye of the famous trainer Thomas Drury Jr, this skilled colt won the Runhappy Ellis Park Derby on August 9 and Blue Grass Stakes on July 11.

On top of these races, Art Collector also finished first during the three Allowance Optional Claiming at Churchill Downs. With his excellent career record of 8-4-1-0, this Bruce Lunsford’s racehorse has emerged as one of the top picks for the upcoming 146th Kentucky Derby.

Honor A.P.

Honor A.P., the Dark Bay-colored colt of CRK Stable, is one of the hottest picks for this year’s Derby. He earned a total of 140 qualifying points with $340,000 non-restricted stakes earnings out of his winning races.

Under the attentive eye of American Thoroughbred racehorse conditioner, John A. Sheriffs, Honor A.P. won the Runhappy Santa Anita Derby held at Santa Anita Park on June 6. Besides that, he also got the second place title during the Shared Belief Stakes at Del Mar on August 1 and San Felipe Stakes at Santa Anita Park last March 7, 2020.

The outstanding performances shown by this three-year-old colt during the Kentucky Derby prep races made him one of the favourites to bet on the 146th Run for the Roses. With his jockey, Mike Smith, does Honor A.P. have what it takes to be the 2020 Kentucky Derby champ? We’ll soon find out.

Thousand Words

Another Bob Baffert-trained colt, Thousand Words joined the Derby trail with his victory during the Grade II Los Alamitos Futurity at Los Alamitos Racecourse on December 7, 2019. Almost two months later, he won the Robert B. Lewis Stakes at Santa Anita Park with a distance of 1 1/16 Miles on February 1, 2020.

Moreover, last August 1, 2020, Thousand Words showed his high-class speed during the Shared Belief Stakes at Del Mar, leading him to finish first and win the race. As of writing, this outstanding colt has a total of 83 qualifying points with $297,000 non-restricted stakes earnings, taking the seventh place of the Kentucky Derby leaderboard.

Takeaway

Although the coronavirus outbreak has affected the sports industry big time, that doesn’t stop the Kentucky Derby hopefuls to make their preparations towards the 2020 run for the roses.

With their winning races, excellent records, and current standings, the contenders mentioned above are just some of the racehorses to watch out for on the big day at Churchill Downs. Thus, if you haven’t placed your bets yet for the 146th Kentucky Derby on September 5, picking the colts above can be the best choice you’ll make to win a wager.