1985 Grand National 1985 Grand National The 1985 Grand National (known as the Seagram Grand National for sponsorship reasons) was the 139th renewal of the Grand National horse race that took place at Aintree Racecourse near Liverpool, England, on 30 March 1985. The race was won by eleven-year-old, 50/1 outsider, Last Suspect, ridden by Hywel Davies in a time of 9 minutes 42.7 seconds for a prize of £54,314. The winner was owned by Anne, Duchess of Westminster and trained by Captain Tim Forster in Letcombe Bassett, Oxfordshire. Aintree chose this year to honour all of the surviving winning jockeys in National history.
Joe Mercer (jockey) Pictorial Biography" Queen Ann Press (1987). Mercer is married to Anne Carr, the daughter of jockey Harry Carr. His older brother, Manny Mercer, was also a jockey and died in a racing accident in 1959. His niece, Carolyn, was married to jockey Pat Eddery. Joe Mercer (jockey) Joseph Mercer, OBE (born 25 October 1934) is a retired English thoroughbred race horse jockey. He was active as a jockey from 1947 to 1985 and rode a total of 2,810 winners in Britain. Mercer's nickname was "Smokin' Joe". He was apprenticed to trainer Frederick Sneyd and won his first British Classic race