Grand National jockey banned after failing to pull up tired horse before fall

Ed Griffiths
Sun, 12 Apr 2026 08:37:04 +0000

Grand National jockey Toby McCain-Mitchell has been handed a 10-day suspension following Saturday's race after stewards ruled he should have stopped his mount before it came down at the final obstacle.

The Aintree inquiry determined that the young jockey failed to withdraw Top Of The Bill despite the horse clearly tiring during the closing stages of the prestigious race.

According to the stewards' report: "The rider and the veterinary officer were interviewed and recordings of the incident were viewed.

"Having considered the evidence, McCain-Mitchell was suspended for 10 days for failing to pull up when the horse had tailed off."

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The 10-year-old gelding, a 50-1 outsider trained by Nigel and Willie Twiston-Davies, required veterinary attention following the incident.

McCain-Mitchell, aged 24, was experiencing his first ride in the famous Aintree contest when the incident occurred.

The jockey comes from racing royalty as the grandson of the late Ginger McCain, the celebrated trainer who guided Red Rum to an unprecedented three Grand National victories.

In a touching tribute to his family's heritage, the young rider tucked a strand of Red Rum's hair into his gloves as a good-luck token for Saturday's race.

Red Rum remains the only horse in history to claim the Grand National title on three separate occasions, cementing the McCain family's legendary status within the sport.

Top Of The Bill had shown considerable promise during the opening half of the contest.

He sat in second position as the field cleared the Chair before moving into the lead at fence 20.

However, the partnership's fortunes changed dramatically at Valentine's Brook, the 25th obstacle on the second circuit.

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The gelding made a significant jumping error.

From that point onwards, the horse began dropping steadily through the pack, losing ground with each passing fence.

By the time the pair approached the final obstacle, Top Of The Bill was completely out of contention, having weakened considerably from his earlier prominent position among the frontrunners.

Three horses in total needed veterinary care following falls during the race.

Top Of The Bill was examined on the course by the Aintree medical team before being walked back to the stables for further monitoring, with officials confirming he was expected to return home on Saturday evening.

Quai De Bourbon, trained by Willie Mullins, came down at the second fence, while Mr Vango, from Sara Bradstock's yard, fell at the sixth obstacle.

Both horses were loaded onto the horse ambulance and transported to the stables for assessment.

Mr Vango was subsequently transferred to Leahurst Equine Hospital for additional tests, whilst Quai De Bourbon was cleared to travel home overnight.