2006 Grand National failed to reach the finishing post. Official BBC coverage of the 2006 Grand National 2006 Grand National The 2006 Grand National (known as the John Smith's Grand National for sponsorship reasons) was the 159th official annual running of the Grand National steeplechase which took place at Aintree near Liverpool, England, on 8 April 2006 and attracted the maximum permitted field of forty competitors for total prize money of £689,360 including £399,140 to the winner. 11–1 Irish shot Numbersixvalverde, ridden by Niall Madden, won the race, ahead of 5–1 joint-favourite and the previous year's winner Hedgehunter in second place. The other
Steeplechase (horse racing) day race-meet. It is the richest event in American steeplechasing with a purse of $500,000. During the 1940s and 50s, the Broad Hollow Steeplechase Handicap, the Brook National Steeplechase Handicap and the American Grand National were regarded as American steeplechasing's Triple Crown. Kentucky Downs near Franklin, Kentucky (originally Dueling Grounds Race Course) was built in 1990 as a steeplechase track, with a kidney-shaped turf circuit. At its inception, the track offered some of the richest purses in the history of American steeplechase including a $750,000 race. The track has undergone numerous ownership changes, with steeplechase races playing an on-and-off role