At the time of his retirement, on medical advice, in December, 1999, Richard Dunwoody was the most successful National Hunt jockey in British history, with 1,699 domestic winners to his name. The Ulsterman won the National Hunt Jockeys’ Championship three times, in 1992/93, 1993/94 and 1994/95, and also had the distinction of winning the three ‘flagship’ races in the National Hunt calendar, namely the Champion Hurdle, Cheltenham Gold Cup and Grand National.
As far as the Grand National is concerned, Dunwoody won the Aintree showpiece twice, on West Tip in 1986 and Miinnehoma in 1994. Having won what is now the Ultima Handicap Chase at the Cheltenham Festival, under Dunwoody, in 1985, West Tip was sent off 13/2 joint-favourite for the Grand National the following month, but fell at Becher’s Brook on the second circuit when in the lead. Nevertheless, the partnership returned to Aintree the following year to set the record straight; a well-supported 15/2 second favourite, West Tip tackled the leader, 66/1 shot Young Driver, approaching the Elbow and stayed on well to win by two lengths.
Eight years later, Dunwoody was back in the winners’ enclosure at Aintree, having proved the epitome of coolness under pressure on the enigmatic 11-year-old Miinnehoma. Owned by comedian Freddie Starr and trained by Martin Pipe, Miinnehoma raced prominently throughout, but Dunwoody delayed his effort until the last minute, cruising past the weakening leader, Moorcroft Boy, on the run-in, before asking his mount for maximum effort to repel the renewed effort of confirmed mudlark Just So in the closing stages. Miinnehoma eventually won by 1¼ lengths, with Moorcroft Boy a further 20 lengths further back in third place. Dunwoody later confessed that he felt he had ‘gone too soon and almost given the race away’.