LIVERPOOL, England (AP) — One of the biggest events on Britain’s sporting calendar takes place Saturday when the Grand National horse race is run at Aintree in northwest England.
The pre-race favorite for the grueling steeplechase over 30 fences is set to be I Am Maximus, the winner of the 2024 edition who is looking to become just the second horse to win back-to-back Nationals since Red Rum in the 1970s.
I Am Maximus is handicapped by the top weight for the race as he looks to back up a victory by 7½ lengths last year. His owner is JP McManus, who is bidding for a record fourth win in the National.
There will be 34 runners for the 177th running of the popular race over 4¼ miles (6.9 kilometers) that is often the subject of household and office sweepstakes and targeted by animal-rights activists.
The Grand National has long been regarded as one of the most dangerous horse races in the world because of the size of the fences, though a number of new measures were introduced last year in an attempt to make it safer.
The race is scheduled to start at 1500 GMT.
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