Synchronised has history as well as 39 rivals to beat

In the lead up to today’s Grand National much has been made of the fact that to win the race Synchronised will have to defy the weight of history.

Only one horse has won the Gold Cup and Grand National in the same season, the legendary Golden Miller in 1934. It’s a sobering stat for the connections of Synchronised even if earlier this week Tony McCoy was talking up the opportunity the nine-year-old has of making history. However when you look a little closer the stat is somewhat misleading given that only 17 Gold Cup winning horses have actually run in the same year’s National. The demands of the Gold Cup and the proximity of the two races tend to put connections off.

In 1935 Golden Miller attempted a double double but having won the Gold Cup he fell in the National. Twelve months on Golden Miller won a record fifth Gold Cup in succession but was brought down at the first fence in the National. In 1946 the Tom Dreaper Prince Regent won the Gold Cup but he had to settle for third in the National.