Home / Entertainment / Grand National fans soak up the sun – as well as a drink or two – as UFC star Conor McGregor bares his chest and One For Arthur storms to victory

Grand National fans soak up the sun – as well as a drink or two – as UFC star Conor McGregor bares his chest and One For Arthur storms to victory

Thousands of revellers enjoy a day out at the biggest race date of the year and watch One For Arthur triumph

PUNTERS basked in the sun as temperatures soared in the 70s for one of biggest days on the horse racing calendar…and the booze flowed from the off.

Tens of thousands descended on Aintree for the Grand National donning colourful dresses and light suits for Britain’s biggest betting extravaganza.

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The Irish UFC star showed off his tattoos as he joined the crowds in Aintree

UFC fighter Conor McGregor was one punter making the most of the April sun, baring his tattooed chest as he stalked his way through the happy go lucky race goers.

The cage fighting superstar spared no expense to get to Aintree taking a long a group of pals by private jet and Rolls-Royce.

He is enjoying the day at the races ahead of his evening at Liverpool’s Mansion nightclub for ‘The Grand National Afterparty’.

The 28-year-old wore sunglasses that flip up, whilst also donning an unbuttoned white Louis Vuitton shirt – showing off his iconic chest tattoo.

McGregor was surrounded by his hefty entourage as he strutted around Aintree which was packed by 70,000 race goers.

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Punters pose for a snap at the end of the day

He watched as One For Arthur powered home to win the race from Cause of Causes followed by Saint Are and favourite Blaklion.

The fallers inlcuded Vicente, Cocktails At Dawn, More Of That, The Young Master, Measureofmydreams and Ucello Conti

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Definitely Red and Shantou Flyer did not finish.

Bookies were given a pasting at Aintree after 14/1 shot One For Arthur romped home.

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A racegoer puts his arm around his wife whose back bears a Mrs C tattoo

The Derek Fox mount trained by Lucinda Russell was followed to the post by well backed jollies such as Cause Of Causes and favourite Blaklion to make matters worse for the turf accountants.

Paddy Power, who were paying out on six places, also paid out on Gas Line Boy and Vieux Lion Rouge who placed in fifth and sixth respectively.

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The stands were virtually empty by just after 7pm

A spokesperson for Paddy Power, said: “It was a cracking race but definitely not the result we would’ve wanted and the bookies are left with longer faces than the horses.

“One for Arthur was one of our worst possible results and Blaklion and Cause Of Causes placing left us with a result worse than a Kendall Jenner Pepsi advert. I hope the punters enjoy the night.”

But William Hill were celebrating that Definitly Red failed to win but One For Arthur was in the top five best backed horses on the day and with a big presence in Scotland, Hills could have had a better day in the office.

“Early signs are that we won in England but got stuffed in Scotland,” said William Hill trading director Terry Pattinson.

“Not our Grandest of Grand Nationals.”

20/1 One For Arthur To Win Grand National 2018

RELATED:  106 Photos of Grand National girls go wild as the booze flows on Ladies Day at Aintree… but it’s early to bed for some
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Huge crowds have descended on the races, sharing drinks and bets over the biggest race of the year in the UK

Temperatures across the UK are expected to hover in the high teens, even breaking over 20C today as the sun beams down and little wind hits the country.

Met Office meteorologist Charles Powell said top temperatures around London were expected to hit about 21 degrees, with it to only improve in some areas over the weekend.

He said: “Today is a really nice, sunny day for most of the UK.”

[ngg_images source=”galleries” container_ids=”213″ display_type=”photocrati-nextgen_basic_thumbnails” override_thumbnail_settings=”0″ thumbnail_width=”240″ thumbnail_height=”160″ thumbnail_crop=”1″ images_per_page=”12″ number_of_columns=”0″ ajax_pagination=”0″ show_all_in_lightbox=”1″ use_imagebrowser_effect=”0″ show_slideshow_link=”1″ slideshow_link_text=”[Show slideshow]” order_by=”sortorder” order_direction=”ASC” returns=”included” maximum_entity_count=”500″]He said: “There is an awful lot of sunshine around the country and tomorrow will be even warmer, with temperatures of 24 to 25 around London.

“We’ve got warm air coming in from the south and hardly any cloud – those ingredients come together quite nicely.”

He said Sunday would mark the warmest day of the year for some areas – but warned that Brits should make the most of the sunny weather this weeknd.

While Sunday could reach up to 24C – rivalling summer hotspots like Barcelona and Athens, the heat wave will not last.

Temperatures will plummet by about ten degrees by Monday.

Brits have rushed outside to make the most of the weekend weather, with crowds descending on Aintree Racecourse in Liverpool.

Fashionistas have donned daring dresses for the most famous event in the horse racing calendar, with thousands of glammed up men and women pouring through the gates.

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Just one of those race-goers included Bradley Lowery – five-year-old who has captured the hearts of the nation during his fight against cancer.

[ngg_images source=”galleries” container_ids=”214″ display_type=”photocrati-nextgen_basic_thumbnails” override_thumbnail_settings=”0″ thumbnail_width=”240″ thumbnail_height=”160″ thumbnail_crop=”1″ images_per_page=”6″ number_of_columns=”0″ ajax_pagination=”0″ show_all_in_lightbox=”1″ use_imagebrowser_effect=”0″ show_slideshow_link=”1″ slideshow_link_text=”[Show slideshow]” order_by=”sortorder” order_direction=”ASC” returns=”included” maximum_entity_count=”500″]Security was out in force for the races, with armed officers dispersed throughout the brightly dressed crowds.

Brits have also flocked to the beach, with crowds heading to the promenade in Aberystwyth, west Wale, to enjoy a glorious April spring morning of bright warm sunshine and clear blue skies.

In the forecast for Saturday, the Met Office said: “Any fog patches will burn off to leave a largely fine day with prolonged sunshine.

“It will be cloudier in the far north with some patchy rain. Turning warm for many after a chilly start, although cooler near the coast.”

[ngg_images source=”galleries” container_ids=”215″ display_type=”photocrati-nextgen_basic_thumbnails” override_thumbnail_settings=”0″ thumbnail_width=”240″ thumbnail_height=”160″ thumbnail_crop=”1″ images_per_page=”21″ number_of_columns=”0″ ajax_pagination=”0″ show_all_in_lightbox=”1″ use_imagebrowser_effect=”0″ show_slideshow_link=”1″ slideshow_link_text=”[Show slideshow]” order_by=”sortorder” order_direction=”ASC” returns=”included” maximum_entity_count=”500″]William Hill are paying out on the Grand National being the hottest on record as Liverpool sweltered today.

William Hill spokesman Rupert Adams said: “We don’t even need to check the record books, our man at Aintree has got sunburn.”

Hills have also trimmed the odds of the record Easter temperature (27.8C) being recorded from 6/1 to 5/1 with warm weather expected for at least the next couple of days.

Hills are also offering 8/1 that the warmest ever April temperature of 29.4C is breached at any point this month.