Bookmakers were celebrating Noble Yeats' 50/1 win in the Randox Grand National.
Runner-up Any Second Now was sent-off favourite but was no match for Matt Brocklebank's Value Bet selection with Minella Times, last year's winner, another potential significant loser, falling on the second circuit.
Sky Bet Head of Sports PR Michael Shinners said: "That was a very favourable result for the firm.
"We had a sizable liability on Minella Times and had seen plenty of each-way support for the likes of Good Boy Bobby, Dingo Dollar and in particular Snow Leopardess who were all unplaced.”
It was a similar story for Paddy Power, spokesman Paul Binfield saying: "Noble Yeats was a good result for the books as he wasn’t a horse that backers latched on to.
"Plenty of punters will be collecting from the placed horses with Any Second Now, Delta Work, Fiddlerontheroof and Longhouse Poet all attracting plenty of support, but we are certainly not complaining.”
William Hill spokesperson Tony Kenny added: “What a brilliant result with Noble Yeats and Sam Waley-Cohen winning the Grand National on the jockey’s final ride in the saddle. Their victory was an excellent result in the trading room with Noble Yeats one of the 40 runners who wasn’t fancied, going off at 50-1, and all in all it’s looking like being one of the top five best results we could have hoped for.”
Nicola McGeady of Ladbrokes said: “As results go, this is certainly one of the better Grand Nationals we’ve had. Noble Yeats just didn’t prove popular with punters at all today, and after last year’s result, we have been spared another costly pay-out.”
Grand National on Betfair exchange
- Winner Noble Yeats had a Betfair SP of 29.1.
- Runner up, Any Second Now, traded at a low of 1.20 in-running (1/5)
- Other notable in-running lows: Delta Work 2.16, Santini 5.
