Mighty Thunder provided Scottish trainer Lucinda Russell with victory in the Coral Scottish Grand National at Ayr on Saturday.
A 1 - 2 for Scotland in the @Coral Scottish Grand National! ??????????????
— Ayr Racecourse (@ayrracecourse) April 18, 2021
The @lucindavrussell trained Mighty Thunder outstays them all to land the prestigious prize under @tommyscu ??? pic.twitter.com/FlqJzWicaQ
Trained in Kinross by Russell and her partner Peter Scudamore, Mighty Thunder was an 8/1 chance for his latest National assignment after winning the Edinburgh National at Musselburgh and finishing second in the Midlands Grand National at Uttoxeter on his last two starts.
Rounding the home turn, it looked like Sandy Thomson could saddle the first two home, with 7/1 favourite Dingo Dollar and his stablemate The Ferry Master clear at the head of affairs.
However, Mighty Thunder responded to jockey Tom Scudamore’s urgings to close the gap and reeled in Dingo Dollar on the run-in to land a popular success by three-quarters of a length.
The Pat Fahy-trained Mister Fogpatches beat The Ferry Master to third place.
Mighty Thunder is the first home-trained winner of Scotland’s most famous jumps race since Merigo in 2012.
"A dream come true again."@lucindavrussell has won a Grand National but always wanted to win a @Coral Scottish Grand National.
— Racing TV (@RacingTV) April 18, 2021
Mighty Thunder achieved the feat today as a Scottish-trained winner of the big race at @ayrracecourse ?? pic.twitter.com/CO4eppukBi