Billionaire horse trainer questioned after 200-1 winner leaves punters speechless and jockey smirks ‘that was easy’

A BILLIONAIRE horse trainer left punters in disbelief as he rattled in a 200-1 winner.

Plasterer-turned-property mogul Luke Comer is already responsible for the biggest-priced winner in history, with 300-1 He Knows No Fear.

Navajo River – 200-1 winner at Roscommon this evening, with 8-11 favourite Fisherman’s Beach finishing second pic.twitter.com/OUBZtmiSPs

— Racing TV (@RacingTV) August 22, 2023

Navajo River tried his best to match that price when causing a monster upset of his own at Roscommon on Tuesday night.

The gigantic win sent shockwaves through the sport – especially as Comer trained the 200-1 third for the same trainer too.

Sandwiched in the middle in second was 8-11 Fisherman’s Beach in the 1m4f Flat maiden at the Irish track.

He Knows No Fear shattered records with his remarkable win at Leopardstown in August 2020.

And three years later – albeit at a different track – Comer showed this is the month to back one of his big-priced outsiders.

Incredibly, Navajo River returned a Betfair starting price of 982-1, with punters totally unwilling to back the three-year-old colt who had been beaten a combined 80 lengths on his first three starts.

But under 2lb claimer Paddy Harnett, Navajo River, who is owned by Comer, ran out a resolute winner.

He bided his time near the back of the field before pouncing late on, snatching victory at the post to win by a head.

Victory was worth around £6,500 while Comer also picked up the £995 third-place prize courtesy of Dark Miss, who he also owns.

OFFERS OF THE DAY

Tote: Bet £10 Get £30 in Free BetsCLAIM HERE

Virgin Bet: Bet £10 Get £20 in free bets – CLAIM HERE

William Hill: Bet £10 Get £40 in Free Bets (MOBILE ONLY)* CLAIM HERE

Betfair: Bet £10 Get £30 in Free BetsCLAIM HERE

Paddy Power: Bet £20 and get it back as Cash if it LosesCLAIM HERE

Sky Bet: Bet £10 Get £30 in Free Horse Racing BetsCLAIM HERE

New customers online only. £/€10 min stake (if EW then min £/€10 Win + £/€10 Place). Receive £/€30 Tote Credit when first bet settles. £/€10 redeemable against win/place racing bets, £/€10 redeemable against Exotics bets and £/€10 redeemable against World Pool bets. Racing and Exotics credit expires after 7 days. World Pool credit expires 17:20 on 26/8/23. Qualifying bet is the first racing pool bet added to the bet-slip. 18+. Full T&Cs apply. BeGambleaware.org.

Virgin Bet: New members. £10 min deposit & bet on sportsbook, placed & settled at 1.5 min odds within 14 days of sign-up. Win part of E/W bets. 2 non-withdrawable £10 Free Bet Tokens: accept in 7 days, valid for 7 days from acceptance (ex. E/Ws & Multiples), stakes not returned. Click here for Rules & Exclusions. Bet Responsibly. BeGambleAware.org 18+ begambleaware.org

William Hill: 18+. Pla18+. Play Safe. When you sign-up via Mobile using promo code N40 and place a bet of £10/€10 or more we will give you 4x £10/€10 free bets credited after settlement of first qualifying bet, free bets will expire 30 days after the qualifying bet is placed, payment method/player/country restrictions apply. begambleaware.org

Betfair: New Customer offer. Place a min £10 bet on the Sportsbook on odds of min 1/2 (1.5), get £30 in Free Bets. Rewards valid for 30 days. SMS verification required. Only deposits via cards will qualify. T&Cs apply. Please Gamble Responsibly 18+ begambleaware.org

Paddy Power: New customers only. Place your FIRST bet on any sportsbook market and if it loses we will refund your stake in CASH. Max refund for this offer is £20. Only deposits made using Cards or Apple Pay will qualify for this promotion. T&Cs apply. Paddy’s Rewards Club: Get a £10 free bet when you place 5x bets of £10+. T&Cs apply. 18+ Begambleaware.org

Sky Bet: 18+NEW CUSTOMERS ONLY. FIRST SINGLE & E/W BET ONLY ODDS OF 1/1 OR GREATER. 3 X £10 BET TOKENS. FREE BET STAKES NOT INCLUDED IN RETURNS. FREE BETS ONLY REDEEMABLE ON HORSE RACING. FREE BETS ARE NON WITHDRAWABLE. NO FREE BET EXPIRY. ELIGIBILITY RESTRICTIONS AND FURTHER T&CS APPLY. 18+ Begambleaware.org

Mind you, that’s small fry for the property mogul who, along with his brother Brian, is said to be worth a combined £2billion.

Comer’s representative Jim Gorman was asked to explain the horse’s improvement in form and he said the colt had benefitted from ‘a step up in trip and strong gallop’.

Having considered the report offered, the raceday stewards noted the explanation offered.

Gorman told Racing TV afterwards: “I don’t know how that happened.

“He was disappointing the last day and Gary [Carroll, jockey] got off him and said he was really green and that was all the information I got.

“Nobody had a bet today – miracles don’t happen all of the time!

“He could be a nice staying horse and please God he’ll go forward from there.”

While jockey Harnett added: “He gave me a beautiful ride the whole way around and it was easy.”

One lucky punter showed their bet slip backing the horse, but most were left in disbelief after seeing the result.

One said: “If you picked that, do the lottery.”

And another commented: “Unbelievable. Anyone see that coming?”

FREE BETS – GET THE BEST SIGN UP DEALS AND RACING OFFERS

Commercial content notice: Taking one of the bookmaker offers featured in this article may result in a payment to The Sun. 18+. T&Cs apply. Begambleaware.org

Remember to gamble responsibly

A responsible gambler is someone who:

Establishes time and monetary limits before playingOnly gambles with money they can afford to loseNever chases their lossesDoesn’t gamble if they’re upset, angry or depressedGamcare – www.gamcare.org.ukGamble Aware – www.begambleaware.org

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *