I Am Maximus wins Grand National again and matches Red Rum feat
I Am Maximus made Grand National history at Aintree by winning again and becoming the first horse since Red Rum to retain the famous race.
Last updated 12 April 2026
I Am Maximus has done the hardest thing the Grand National can ask of a horse: come back and win it again. His victory at Aintree on Saturday 11 April 2026 did more than add another National to his record. It pushed him into the narrow slice of race history that matters most, because he is the first horse to retain the Grand National since Red Rum.
That is the line that will define this result. Plenty of horses can win one National with the right blend of class, stamina and luck in running. Defending the title is different. The weight of expectation is heavier, the handicap is tougher to solve, and the race still demands the same calm jumping rhythm over four miles and 30 fences. I Am Maximus handled all of it again.
Why the Red Rum comparison matters
The Red Rum reference is not just a neat bit of nostalgia. It is the quickest way to explain how unusual this repeat win is. The Grand National has always been big enough, chaotic enough and punishing enough that even excellent staying chasers usually get only one clean shot at immortality. To win it twice in a row means a horse is not just good enough for the race, but unusually well suited to its exact demands.
That is what makes I Am Maximus' achievement stand out immediately. He was not simply the right horse on the day. He has now proved, across successive renewals, that Aintree brings out the best version of him. In a sport that moves fast from one Saturday to the next, that kind of repeatability is what creates a lasting National story.
A horse built for Aintree
The most impressive part of the performance was how familiar it looked. I Am Maximus again travelled like a horse who understands the race, conserved enough for the closing stages and kept finding when others began to fade. That ability to combine stamina with control is what separates a true National horse from a horse who merely stays well in ordinary handicaps.
Once the race started to thin out, he looked like the runner most likely to handle the final stretch of pressure. That is not accidental. The National still punishes impatience, sketchy jumping and wasted energy, and he again looked comfortable in the exact moments when the race tends to become unmanageable for most of the field.
What this win leaves behind
For Willie Mullins and Paul Townend, this is another National result that instantly sits in the top line of the yard's staying-chase story. For the wider race, it gives the modern Grand National something every big sporting event needs: a horse whose achievement can be understood in one sentence. He retained the title. Nobody had done that since Red Rum.
That is why this win will travel beyond the usual race-day coverage. Even people who did not study the field or the betting know what back-to-back Nationals mean. I Am Maximus is no longer just a recent winner of the race. He is now part of the Aintree conversation that lasts.