Virtual Grand National 2020: Betting, odds, live stream, start time and how it

works

Forty runners and riders will line up tomorrow for the biggest and most anticipated race of the jumps season – but, with horseracing shut down, the venue will be cyberspace, not Aintree.

Using state-of-the-art computer-generated imagery, complex mathematical algorithms and a detailed analysis of racing form, boffins and racing experts have been working round the clock to deliver the Virtual Grand National.

Inspired Entertainment, the company which delivers virtual reality racing for Britain’s betting shops, is behind the project and has compiled a list of runners from the original entries headed by favourite Tiger Roll, who should have been staging an historic bid to become the first horse to win the world’s most watched steeplechase for the third year running.

Using state-of-the-art computer-generated imagery, mathematical algorithms and a detailed analysis of racing form, experts have been working to deliver a Virtual Grand National

As Aintree lies deserted, millions are set to tune in for a virtual version of the biggest horseracing event of the year on Saturday

The work involved was extraordinary – around three years have been spent by the team at Inspired putting it together. Trainers, jockeys, commentators and tipsters have funnelled their expertise into powerful computers to make it the most accurate possible simulation.

With a 5.15pm start time – the same as the real thing – in a half-hour programme on ITV starting at 5pm, the broadcasters are hopeful millions will tune in for a welcome distraction in these uncertain times to watch horses jump 30 virtual fences over four and a quarter miles.

Bookies are also taking bets – to a maximum of £10 each way – with any profits they make going to NHS Charities. So here’s your guide to the only (virtual) sporting show in town

How does it work?.

Information about the horses is fed into computer software which then determines their potential finishing positions.

A horse’s chances are based on factors including past performances, the horse’s current form, the weight the horse has to carry and their previous efforts on the ‘Good’ ground the Virtual Grand National is being run on.

As a rough guide, Tiger Roll, the 5-1 favourite, has a theoretical 16 per cent chance of winning, whereas one of the 100-1 shots has a one per cent chance.

Think of a lottery scenario. Imagine 100 balls in a bucket. If 16 of them represent Tiger Roll, there is more chance his name will be pulled out but there is still a chance, albeit a lesser one, that the one ball representing the 100-1 shot will be selected.