2012 Grand National by Ginger McCain, the father of Ballabriggs' trainer Donald McCain, Jr. Among the early favourites for the race – alongside Ballabriggs – were Junior (trained by 2008's winning trainer David Pipe), Synchronised (the winner of the Lexus Chase on 28 December 2011 and later the 2012 Cheltenham Gold Cup), Weird Al (winner in the October 2011 Charlie Hall Chase), and Midnight Chase (first in the Cotswold Chase on 4 February 2012). Synchronised was attempting to become the first horse since Golden Miller in 1934 to win both the Gold Cup and Grand National in the same year. Handicap weights were
Ascot Gold Cup a new trophy for the race — the "Emperor's Plate" — and this became the title of the event for a short period. Its original name was restored after nine years, during the Crimean War. The Gold Cup is the first leg of Britain's "Stayers' Triple Crown", followed by the Goodwood Cup and the Doncaster Cup. The last horse to win all three races in the same year was Double Trigger in 1995. The Gold Cup is one of three perpetual trophies at the Royal Ascot meeting, along with the Royal Hunt Cup and the Queen's Vase, which can be