Recite A Prayer Grand National Wins
Recite A Prayer has never won the Grand National.
They have never finished the race.
The Willie Mullins-trained Recite A Prayer has proven himself in some of the best-staying handicaps in Ireland, and that was before he went to Aintree for the very first time to run in the Grand National, which came in 2023.
Foaled in 2015, the horse didn’t actually begin life with Mullins but was transferred to him after a couple of runs under rules. Since then, he’s done nothing but improve, especially over fences, which really brought out the best in this horse.
Full Results
| Year | Result | Prize Money | Handicap | Jockey | Trainer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Fence 1 - Unseated Rider | - | 10-2 | Jack B Foley | Willie Mullins |
Recite A Prayer’s Early Years
Recite A Prayer began his racing career by making his debut in an Irish point-to-point race back in December 2019. He was pulled up that day with something amiss, but two months later, in February 2020, he made amends for that by winning his second start by 12 lengths.
He would race for Paul Hennessy under rules, though only twice, two races that were national hunt flat races and say him finish down the field. A move to the Willie Mullins yard came next, and this is where the horse began to improve.
Straight over hurdles, he was second on debut before finishing third and fourth in his next two starts, then finally getting a win on the board in a Tramore chase, his first run over the bigger obstacles.
As the year progressed, the horse continued to improve, ending the season with two second-placed efforts and two more victories, all of which came over the bigger fences. The last of those was his win in the Killarney National, his only big race win so far, but this was an important season for more than that, the horse had shown that staying distances and bigger fences were needed to see the best of him.
Recite A Prayer’s Big Race Wins
So far in his career, Recite A Prayer has run well in a number of good races but only managed to win one of those. That came in May 2022, when he won the Killarney National, a long-distance 3m2f handicap, held in May on spring ground, making it the ideal test ahead of other spring races, like the Grand National.
The horse won this race off a mark of 132, with a winning distance of two and a half lengths. That set him up perfectly to attack the higher end of staying chases the following season, where he would run well and look up to the task but fail to win.