'A magnificent denouement' - Waley-Cohen's fairytale ending caps off super week

The Racing Post's awards will honour the best (and sometimes worst) performances and raise talking points from the last seven days of racing. This week's winners are . . .

Moment of the week

Sam Waley-Cohen retires at the top

What else? The mild-mannered dental entrepreneur who moonlighted as a jockey announced on Thursday that he would bid a fond farewell to his career in the saddle after riding Noble Yeats in the Grand National, but not many would have fancied him to bow out by actually winning the thing.

It was only 14 months ago that 50-1 National hero Noble Yeats was running in bumpers, and no seven-year-old had taken the prize since Bogskar in 1940.

This was a magnificent denouement to a magnificent amateur career, and the Waley-Cohen family celebrations afterwards were enough to bring a lump to the throat.

Grand National fairytale as 50-1 Noble Yeats wins for retiring Sam Waley-Cohen

Performance of the week

Sam Brown

Could the race immediately preceding the Grand National have thrown up a leading contender for next year's big race?

The highly talented Shan Blue was the overwhelming favourite off his tasty mark of 148 for the 3m1f Betway Handicap Chase, yet he was thrashed 15 lengths by the Anthony Honeyball-trained 28-1 shot.

Sam Brown will be an 11-year-old next year, but Saturday was only his 13th career run and it will be intriguing to see how he is campaigned next season. His half-length second to Royale Pagaille in the Peter Marsh suggests he could be competitive at open Graded level, but will connections try to protect his mark and return to Aintree for the big one in 12 months' time?

Watch Sam Brown romp to victory at Aintree

Jockey of the week

Mark Walsh

Walsh's form figures over Friday and Saturday at Aintree read 12112, including a Grade 1 hat-trick, in what was a sensational week for owner JP McManus and his retained rider.

A second Melling Chase win on the underappreciated Fakir D'Oudairies was followed by Gentleman De Mee's authoritative defeat of Edwardstone, and Sire Du Berlais's Liverpool Hurdle triumph.

Fakir D'Oudairies: one of Mark Walsh's winnersCredit: John Grossick (racingpost.com/photos)

Walsh then produced a peach of a ride on Any Second Now in the National, and if you'd told him beforehand he would finish 20 lengths ahead of Delta Work then he'd probably have assumed the world's most famous jumps race would have been his. Alas, it was close but no cigar for the second year running.

'I thought at the last we might just get there' - Ted Walsh on Any Second Now

Market mover of the week

for the Gold Cup

Lucinda Russell has never hidden what the ultimate goal is for her stable star Ahoy Senor, and she now finds herself with the current third favourite for next year's Cheltenham Gold Cup after the novice chaser was cut to 8-1 (from 20) for the festival showpiece.

Was this an overreaction to his Mildmay Chase success? After all, it's hard to believe L'Homme Presse and Bravemansgame ran their true races and he has been beaten by both before, while his jumping is yet to fully impress.

But there is absolutely no doubting the engine he possesses, and if he makes it to the Gold Cup in one piece and jumps the last in contention you can be sure he will be galloping powerfully to the line. His five-and-a-half-length victory over Noble Yeats in the Towton at Wetherby doesn't look too bad now either.

'As good as I've come across' - emotional Scudamore thrilled with Ahoy Senor

Form boosts of the week

Constitution Hill and Honeysuckle

Neither really needed a form boost but Aintree nonetheless provided them for arguably the two best hurdlers in training.

Jonbon, who had finished 22 lengths behind stablemate Constitution Hill in the Supreme Novices', was a battling winner on Thursday, while Might I's second-placed finish in the Mersey Novices' Hurdle on Saturday was another tick for Nicky Henderson's festival winner.

Epatante, second in the Champion Hurdle and who has seen the backside of Honeysuckle on three occasions, once again proved her credentials as a top-class mare when taking the step up to two and a half miles in the Aintree Hurdle in her stride, while Cheltenham third Zanahiyr looked booked for second before his fall at the last.

It remains to be seen whether Constitution Hill and Honeysuckle line-up against each other for a Punchestown showdown, but what a way to cap a marvellous jumps season that would be.

Constitution Hill v Honeysuckle: who would win in a showdown?

Read more on The Last Word . . .

'Sam jumped the last towards the middle, the straightest line to the Elbow'

Waley-Cohen richly rewarded for staking career finale on 50-1 shot

'Only Tiger Roll has returned a higher figure' – who impressed at Aintree?

Catch our new in-depth review of the weekend's racing every Monday in the Racing Post. With big-race analysis from Grand National-winning jockey Leighton Aspell, Chris Cook's take on the weekend action, eyecatchers from the Raceform team, weekly awards and more, it is not to be missed.