Grand National first jump, suddenly veered across the leading group at the 23rd, causing them to either stop, refuse or unseat their riders. Racing journalist Lord Oaksey described the resulting pile-up by saying that Popham Down had "cut down the leaders like a row of thistles". Some horses even started running in the wrong direction, back the way they had come. Foinavon, whose owner had such little faith in him that he had travelled to Worcester that day instead, had been lagging some 100 yards behind the leading pack, giving his jockey, John Buckingham, time to steer his mount wide of the
1994 Grand National race it emerged that Moorcroft Boy had broken a blood vessel within strides of the last fence and raced up the run-in choking. He later suffered a broken neck when falling in the Becher Chase the following November but was nursed back to health to win the 1996 Scottish Grand National, his final race before retiring. Double Silk was another hunter chaser who went to Aintree on the back of a run of ten consecutive victories, which included the 1993 Cheltenham and Aintree Foxhunters chases, the former of which had seen him secure a second consecutive victory over Moorcroft Boy.