Horse racing news: Jockey Jason Maguire in race to make Aintree
Thursday 19 March 2015 15:01, UK
Grand National-winning rider Jason Maguire appears set to miss this year's renewal of the Aintree spectacular on April 11.
Maguire, who famously struck for his boss Donald McCain on Ballabriggs in 2011, suffered a fall at Catterick, with resultant news from scans suggesting he may be on the sidelines for the world's greatest steeplechase for the second successive year.
The news adds further to a "frustrating" season for Maguire, who was forced to miss the Cheltenham Festival through suspension.
Writing in his blog on lovetheraces.com, Maguire said: "My frustrating season continues. After missing the Cheltenham Festival with a lengthy ban, my misery was compounded further by the fact I managed to pick up quite a bad injury when falling at Catterick last month.
"The first scan I had after the fall suggested that I had a slipped disc and I may have damaged one of my vertebrae, which is not good news at all. I'm having a second opinion on it next week, but the initial signs are not good, which means I may be ruled out of riding in the Grand National for the second year running.
"It's fair to say luck is not on my side at the minute."
Maguire missed Cheltenham and Aintree 12 months ago when a bad fall on the eve of the Festival left him with serious injuries in hospital.
