Odds-on for nag from fiancee after my ‘better than sex’ win
Mick tells of 1996 Grand National joy
MICK Fitzgerald received a frosty welcome from his then fiancee after saying winning the Grand National was “better than sex” on live TV.
The Corkman steered 7/1 favourite Rough Quest to victory in the race in 1996 and made the comment when he was interviewed immediately after.
Fitzgerald told Paddy Power’s From The Horse’s Mouth podcast: “When I said that to Des Lynam, I was actually engaged at the time and my fiancee [Jane Brackenbury, who he later divorced] wasn’t at Aintree. She was watching on TV like the other 10 million people that saw it. So when I got home that night, it was quite late and we had a party so like there was banners ‘Well done’, ‘Well done Grand National winner’ and everybody’s inside.
“I had managed to dodge her all night basically because I knew I was going to get it at some stage for what I said.
“Honestly Maradona didn’t have the moves that I had when it came to swerving her, but eventually I got cornered and she says, ‘Oh that was brilliant, I’m so pleased for you, well done, but what about what you said?’
“And I said, ‘Look, I’m really sorry about that,’ and she said, ‘I’ve only got one thing to say about that,’ and I said, ‘What’s that?” and she said, ‘How often is the Grand National run?’”
When Paddy Power’s Frank Hickey pointed out that the Grand National lasts about 11 minutes,
Fitzgerald answered: “Well she did say I would never last that long!”
However, Fitzgerald became so associated with that telly moment that he went on to title his autobiography Better Than Sex. He previously said: “It does change your life. You’re no longer just a jockey, or an ex-jockey, you’re a Grand National winning jockey.
“For me I’m proud to have achieved that.
“I think it’s summed up in what I said after the race.
“My autobiography is called Better Than Sex and I think that just about says
it all.”