Lord Du Mesnil Grand National Wins
Lord Du Mesnil has never won the Grand National.
They have never finished the race.
Lord Du Mesnil shot to fame during the 2019/20 season, where he improved at a rapid rate to go from being a regular horse to being one that could compete in some of the best races on the calendar. That run saw him move up in trip, and that would eventually lead to the 2021 Grand National.
Foaled in 2013, the horse, trained by Richard Hobson, originally started his training career in France, where he was bred. That would give him an early taste of racing over obstacles, he ran in hurdles as a three-year-old and over fences as a four-year-old.
His first Grand National attempt came in 2021 when he was pulled up at the 21st fence under jockey Nick Schofield. It was reported afterwards that the ground was too quick for the horse, who needed things much softer to be seen to best effect.
Full Results
| Year | Result | Prize Money | Handicap | Jockey | Trainer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Fence 21 - Pulled Up | - | 10-6 | Nick Scholfield | Richard Hobson |
Lord Du Mesnil’s Early Years
Lord Du Mesnil had his first career run in October 2016, the first of nine runs he would have in France. During this part of his career, he didn’t actually win a race, three came over hurdles, and six came over fences.
In October 2018, he would find himself on UK debut under the care of Richard Hobson. Unusually, rather than going back to hurdles, as many French recruits normally do, Hobson decided to keep his horse over fences. His first two runs saw the horse fall and unseat his rider, so it was back to hurdles, hoping for more luck.
Four hurdle runs would yield nothing, so the horse had wind surgery that still didn’t work, and at the end of his first UK season, he finished with a record of 10 runs and no wins. After a slow start in October 2019, things finally began to change for the good of this horse.
He would run seven times that year, winning three and finishing second in her other four starts. To start the year, he was rated 115, and at the end of the year, he was rated 153, a rise of almost 40 pounds.
Lord Du Mesnil’s Big Race Wins
During that excellent season where he came to life, Lord Du Mesnil would win two good handicaps, not huge races, but certainly, ones that are known within the industry. He won the Tommy Whittle Chase and The Last Fling, both ran at Haydock.
That season would end with a second-place finish in the Grand National Trial, also at Haydock, and the National Hunt Chase, at the Cheltenham Festival.
A year later, the horse would win just once, running in much better races that season, and it would be second time lucky in the Grand National Trial. This long-distance test was a thriller all the way round, and it wasn’t until the very end that the main horses were separated, with Lord Du Mesnil winning the contest by half a length.
That would set him up for the 2021 Grand National, his first attempt at the race, but one he failed to finish.