In recent years, one name has towered above all others in the National Hunt training sphere. From his County Carlow base, Willie Mullins has conquered the jumps scene in his homeland and in Britain. A man to be feared wherever he shows up, Mullins is particularly potent at the major spring festivals.
Perhaps best known for his record-setting 113 winners at the Cheltenham Festival, Mullins has also enjoyed a spectacular run of success at Aintree. His Grand National victories in 2023 and 2024 helped propel the County Kilkenny native to the British Trainers Championship.
With £1 million in prize money up for grabs, the 2026 Grand National is among the number one targets for Mullins and just about every other leading National Hunt trainer. Among the Closutton contenders plotting a course to Merseyside in April is the horse who claimed top spot in 2023 and came close to doubling up in 2024. Sporting the famous green and gold of JP McManus, I Am Maximus is Aintree-bound once more.
Henderson’s Loss is Mullins Gain
Nicky Henderson doesn’t seem the type to hold a grudge. However, the Grand National heroics of I Am Maximus must be a little galling for a trainer who has won just about everything in the sport, with the glaring exception of the Aintree showpiece.
Carrying the colours of Mike Grech at the time, I Am Maximus began his racing career at Henderson’s Seven Barrows base. Successful first time out in a Cheltenham bumper, he won one of four outings over hurdles and finished a respectable fourth in the Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival.
Fate then conspired against Henderson. Required to spend more time in Ireland due to work commitments, Mike Grech relocated his entire string to the Emerald Isle, seeing I Am Maximus take up residence at the Mullins operation in November 2022.
I Am Maximus’ Record with Nicky Henderson
| Date | Race | Course | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 24/10/20 | National Hunt Flat Race | Cheltenham | 1st |
| 10/11/21 | Novices’ Hurdle | Exeter | 3rd |
| 15/12/21 | Maiden Hurdle | Newbury | 1st |
| 1/1/22 | Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle | Cheltenham | 2nd |
| 16/3/22 | Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle | Cheltenham | 4th |
Immediately sent over fences, I Am Maximus performed with credit to finish fourth in Grade 1 events at Leopardstown and Cheltenham. That latter effort in the 2023 Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase prompted JP McManus to splash the cash to secure his services. As has so often been the case, McManus struck gold with his new acquisition.
2023 – Irish National Heroics
For his first outing in the McManus silks, I Am Maximus was set the considerable task of conquering 26 rivals in the 2023 Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse. With the longest trip he had previously tackled being the 3m½f of the Brown Advisory, the 3m5f distance of the Irish Grand National represented a step into the unknown. The race also represented a significant test of his jumping ability on his first start outside of novice company, with the fact that he had never previously won over fences providing a further question mark.
I Am Maximus’ 2022/23 Season Race Record
| Date | Race | Course | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3/12/22 | Beginners Chase | Fairyhouse | 2nd |
| 28/12/22 | Beginners Chase | Leopardstown | 2nd |
| 5/2/23 | Ladbrokes Novice Chase | Leopardstown | 4th |
| 15/3/23 | Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase | Cheltenham | 4th |
| 10/4/23 | Irish Grand National Chase | Fairyhouse | 1st |
For much of the way, success didn’t look particularly likely for the mount of Paul Townend. Displaying signs of inexperience, I Am Maximus repeatedly jumped out to his left and generally required a lot of cajoling to keep up to his work. However, I Am Maximus slowly but surely worked himself into a rhythm and began to creep into contention on the final circuit. Looming large on the outside, he moved closer to the lead around the home bend. Asked to go and win the race, he burst between rivals over the final fence and forged clear for a one-length success.
2024 – Taking Aim at Aintree
Bumped up to a mark of 158 following his Fairyhouse triumph, I Am Maximus made his first start of the 2023/24 season in the Grade 1 Drinmore Novice Chase. Sent off at 11/1 in the five-runner field, he produced a determined finishing effort to upset his more fancied rivals. As of December 2025, that remains his only top-level victory.
Sent to Leopardstown for his next two starts, I Am Maximus faced an impossible task against Galopin Des Champs in the Savills Chase and Irish Gold Cup. With his season building towards the Aintree Grand National, he then had his final prep run in the Bobbyjo Chase at Fairyhouse – a race Mullins had won with his first Grand National winner Hedgehunter in 2005. Despite conceding weight to three useful rivals, I Am Maximus proved a class apart in sauntering to a 14-length success. With the weights for the Grand National released before that performance, the rising star was officially 6lb well in for his Aintree assignment.
I Am Maximus’ 2023/24 Season Race Record
| Date | Race | Course | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3/12/23 | Drinmore Novice Chase | Fairyhouse | 1st |
| 28/12/23 | Savills Chase | Leopardstown | 4th |
| 3/2/24 | Irish Gold Cup Chase | Leopardstown | 3rd |
| 24/2/24 | Bobbyjo Chase | Fairyhouse | 1st |
| 13/4/24 | Grand National | Aintree | 1st |
With Mullins in his corner and the weight factor in his favour, punters latched onto the claims of I Am Maximus in the 2024 Grand National, seeing the eight-year-old sent off as the 7/1 joint favourite alongside the Gavin Cromwell mare Limerick Lace. What followed was one of the most impressive Grand National triumphs of the modern era.
Ridden quietly towards the inside by Paul Townend, I Am Maximus began to close on the leaders at the second last. Moving third at the elbow, he was forced to switch around horses to launch his challenge. Once in the clear, the response was electric. Looking like he had just joined in, I Am Maximus sprinted to the line to record an impressive 7½l victory.
2025: Out on His Shield in Aintree Defence
With wins in the Irish and English Nationals, I Am Maximus headed into the 2024/25 season with the defence of his Aintree crown as his number one objective. Once again pitched into the Savills Chase and Irish Gold Cup as part of his prep, he showed very little when pulling up in the former event and finishing a well-beaten eighth in the latter.
Despite those subpar outings, I Am Maximus was handed a mark of 170 ahead of the 2025 Grand National – fully 11lb higher than in 2024. That mark made him the highest-rated runner in the field, seeing him saddled with top weight of 11st12lb. To come home in front for a second time would demand a truly mighty performance.
I Am Maximus’ 2024/25 Season Race Record
| Date | Race | Course | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 28/12/24 | Savills Chase | Leopardstown | Pulled Up |
| 1/2/25 | Irish Gold Cup Chase | Leopardstown | 8th |
| 5/4/25 | Grand National | Aintree | 2nd |
In the end, I Am Maximus put in a monumental effort to beat all bar one of his 34 rivals. Travelling smoothly into contention, he again threw down the gauntlet, approaching the elbow. However, whereas he met little resistance in 2024, this time he found the immovable object of stablemate Nick Rockett standing in his way. Try as he might, he couldn’t quite master the mount of Patrick Mullins, who pulled clear to register a famous father and son Grand National triumph. I Am Maximus stuck on gamely for second ahead of Grangeclare West in a Mullins 1-2-3.
Back for More in 2026
Having conclusively proven his ability to handle the unique demands of the Grand National fences and see out the 4m2f marathon trip, I Am Maximus is likely to return for a third shot at the prize in 2026. Outlining his plans for the horse, Mullins stated:
“You don’t need me to tell you where we will be aiming him – all roads will lead back to Aintree for the Grand National. He has run two fabulous races in it, and we’ll stick to the same sort of plan as last season.”
With a current chase rating of 170, I Am Maximus is likely to face a similarly tough task as in 2025. However, he will almost certainly be better off at the weights with his conqueror Nick Rockett. If he comes home in front, he will become the ninth horse to win the Grand National on more than one occasion, and the first to regain his crown having lost it since the mighty Red Rum in 1977.
