Everything to know about the 2022 Virtual Grand National

29^th March 2022

The editorial unit

The editorial unit

29 March 2022

Everyone knows about the world-famous Grand National that takes place at Aintree Racecourse, but many aren’t aware that there’s another version of the event that takes place in the virtual world. The Virtual Grand National first took place in 2017 and, thanks to the popularity of the event, now takes place every year, a day before the big event. The technology behind the race ensures that it closely replicates the action of its real-world counterpart, which gives the experience a healthy dose of respectability. This article includes everything one needs to know about the 2022 Virtual Grand National, including when it is, how to tune in to catch the action and why many people consider searching the odds for the main event to back the winner of the virtual race for glory in the real thing.

What is the Virtual Grand National?

That’s easily answered by looking at the name: it’s simply the virtual (or digital) version of the world’s most famous steeplechase! Of course, that doesn’t sound all that impressive on its own. But when one dives into the details of the event, it’s clear to see that the credibility of the race is pretty solid. For one thing, the animating studio, Inspired Entertainment, have gone to great lengths to replicate the experience in as much detail as possible, and the graphics are top-tier. Indeed, on a quick glimpse of the virtual race, one could be forgiven for thinking that they were watching the real thing.

And things become even more impressive with the technology that dictates the outcome of the race. An advanced algorithm analyses the previous performances of each horse, along with their age, weight and the course weather conditions to predict which horses will come out on top. And, as it will become clear later, this algorithm can be remarkably accurate. 

Watching the race

The Virtual Grand National will be shown on ITV on the day prior to the actual Grand National. Though the showing time hasn’t yet been announced, it’s usually around 8pm. The big race itself happens at around 1pm the following day. 

The history of the Virtual Grand National

The current incarnation of the Virtual Grand National dates back to 2017. But it’s not the first time that a race has been computer-generated. Back in 1968, a Foot and Mouth outbreak meant the cancellation of the King George VI Chase, so a computer took over. But the technology wasn’t as good back then as it is today. 

Previous winners of the race 

Watching a virtual horse race wouldn’t be all that interesting if there was nothing advanced about the formula the creators used to pick a winner. The Virtual Grand National stands out because of how closely the race result has mirrored the result of the actual Grand National. 

In 2018, the algorithm correctly predicted the winner of the Grand National. Tiger Roll took the medal in the virtual and real-world races. That’s the only time that that’s happened, but the algorithm has gotten pretty close on other occasions. For instance, in 2017, the winner of the race, Cause of Causes, came second at Aintree; in 2019, Rathvinden took the gold in the virtual race and finished third at Aintree. 

Building excitement for the real Grand National

Ultimately, the virtual Grand National is never going to replace the real Grand National. That, after all, has a long and storied history, and no matter how good computer animation becomes in the future, it’ll never replace the thrill of watching history being made in the real race. But as we’ve seen, there’s a lot of interest in the virtual edition of the race. The Grand National has always been a standout event in the UK’s sporting calendar, so it’s little wonder that the public is eager for as much content as possible.

The editorial unit