Boylesports Irish Grand National |
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| Grade A Handicap, Fairyhouse 17:00 €500,000 guaranteed, 5yo plus, 3m 5f, Class 1  |
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1 Soldier In Milan 6/1F
2
Showurappreciation 10/1
3
The Enabler 28/1
30 ran Distances: 16l, 4l, 13l
Time: 7m 50.50s (slow by 16.70s)
Soldier In Milan WINS the BOYLE Sports Irish Grand National Chase 🏆
— ITV Racing (@itvracing) April 6, 2026
What a performance by Donagh Meyler for Emmet Mullins 👏 pic.twitter.com/fSPcaQZvo2
The Irish Grand National, for all its history, rarely lends itself to tidy narratives, yet Soldier In Milan imposed one of his own at Fairyhouse, overcoming inexperience with a performance of authority that marked him out as a staying chaser of considerable potential.
Emmet Mullins’ seven-year-old arrived with just five runs under rules, a profile more suggestive of promise than proof, but the confidence behind him in the market told its own story. Sent off a well-supported 6-1 favourite, he travelled with purpose throughout under Donagh Meyler, adopting a prominent position before asserting his authority leaving the back straight for the final time. From there, the race took on a one-sided complexion. Taking over from Monbeg Genius, he moved smoothly into contention, and when Kiss Will, his nearest pursuer, departed at the third-last, the path to victory opened decisively.
What followed was not merely a victory, but a statement. Showurappreciation and The Enabler attempted to close, but neither could make an impression on a horse who appeared to be operating on a different level, striding clear to win by 16 lengths in a performance that combined stamina, fluency and composure in equal measure.
Mullins, reflecting on the display, admitted both relief and admiration. “It hasn’t really hit home yet. I was pinching myself jumping the last with a lap to go, he was jumping and travelling and everything was going very smoothly.
“The biggest worry was bypassing the fourth last and hitting the front.
“I had warned Donagh that if everything is going right to wait as long as he can. He executed everything brilliantly, it was a brilliant ride.
“Leaving out a hurdle campaign was a risk, I suppose. We always hoped he had the class to overcome the inexperience.
“He was smart out the gate and into gear. Fingers crossed we think he could be a classy individual.”
There had been, by his own admission, a degree of caution beforehand. “He was fit and well. Funnily enough, I know he went off favourite, but I told Paul ‘everything is good, he’s happy, he’s healthy, he’s fit but I’ve seen him in better order’.
“I was only 95 per cent. I was 100 per cent happy last year going for the bumper in Punchestown and that proved to be very strong form, beating King Rasko Grey.
“Fingers crossed we can get him back 100 per cent again some other day!
“A well-backed favourite winning an Irish National is something special and he was greatly received here today. It’s an honour and a privilege.
“It’s been the plan, there’s no hiding that fact, since the start of the season when we decided we were going over fences.
“We decided to keep low mileage and get the four runs he needed to qualify. It was well executed, I suppose. There are lots of plans that go awry but that was magic.
“You are hoping though the horse has got the mentality for it, the courage for that cavalry charge down to the first and to come out of it with a good position.
“We thought we had a classy individual and thankfully he’s proved it.”
Where that class may ultimately take him remains an open question. “He’s a classy individual but this has been a route in the past to the Aintree Grand National as well.
“We won’t nail our colours to the mast just yet anyway.”
For now, however, the evidence is compelling. In a race that exposes weakness and rewards resilience, Soldier In Milan displayed both the substance and the scope to suggest that this may be no isolated success, but rather the beginning of something more significant.
Boylesports Irish Grand National Chase
(Extended Handicap) (Grade A)
€500,000 guaranteed, 5yo plus, 3m 5f, Class 1
30 ran
Going: Yielding to Soft
