Millionaire businessman who rode in Grand National quits racing after breaking back

A millionaire businessman who defied his critics to finish sixth in the world famous Grand National has quit the saddle. Amateur rider David Maxwell, 47, combined his career as a property developer with regular appearances on the racecourse riding his own horses in Britain and France.

He rode 75 winners under rules and pulled off a rare feat for a ‘hobby amateur’ when completing the Grand National course on Ain’t That A Shame. However it was another visit to Aintree this year that has put paid to his riding exploits when he took a fall during the Foxhunters Chase on the Grand National course in April.

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Although he rode again, it was subsequently discovered he had suffered a broken back.

“I am 47, the bone is taking such a long time to heal and you feel those injuries more and more,” said Maxwell, whose horses currently trained in the UK are heading to the sales.

“I’m afraid it’s just time. I’ve been through all of the stages of grief this summer, denial, acceptance but it's just time I’m afraid.

“I actively cannot watch other people ride my horses. I just can’t do it. When I told Josh Moore I was having to pack it in he said the hardest part of retiring he found was other people riding horses that were his rides and he was still training them.

“I’ll keep a couple on in France, but the ones here are going to the sales and I’ll probably buy some more after I’ve gone cold turkey for a bit and then I’ll buy some young ones I’d say.”

Maxwell, whose father Jeremy was a trainer, took up riding in his late twenties and became champion amateur twice. He rode a Grade 3 winner in France and landed the Champion Hunters Chase at the 2021 Punchestown Festival.

He bought the Henry de Bromhead-trained Ain’t That A Shame to ride at Aintree and finished 16 lengths sixth behind I Am Maximus.

“I genuinely thought I was going to win crossing the Melling Road!” said Maxwell. “I will never forget that moment for as long as I live. For two seconds I was thinking ‘I’m going to win’ but then I looked round and realised I wasn’t.

“That two seconds of thinking I was going to win, or being honest the whole thing, were just the best.”

He added: “The injury isn’t going to prevent me from doing anything, I could probably still ride if I was prepared to take the whacks, it’s more just the age I’m at, you just can’t keep abusing the body – in theory I do this for fun.

“I don’t think we’ve left too much on the table, I wasn’t going to be doing this when I was 50 so why did I need to eke out one more year.”