Horse-by-horse guide: Randox Grand National

A hugely impressive winner of this race in 2024, the 8lb higher mark last year (and a poor round of jumping) proved too much as he finished an honourable second to stablemate Nick Rockett. He has quite the record in handicaps, with an Irish National win in his only other attempt. While it’s a big ask to regain his crown at the age of 10, he’s highly likely to run well again off a 1lb higher mark than a year ago.

A proper Grade 1 performer on his day, winning the 2024 King George and running well in the race again last year when only beaten a nose. He was slightly disappointing at Cheltenham though (not for the first time), and so needs to bounce back. He won a Grade 1 over fences here as a novice, but that was over two and a half miles. I have reservations about his stamina for this trip, but his pedigree gives some encouragement in that regard.

He looked a little unlucky last year when finishing third, with a shuddering error on the landing side of the final fence seeing him lose ground and momentum. He did remarkably well to finish as close as he did, especially with the timing of that error. He looked as good as ever when winning the Bobbyjo Chase at Fairyhouse on his latest start, with the last two winners of that contest following up here. He looks sure to be involved granted even average luck.

A Grand National debutant, but he has a good record at Aintree (winning both previous starts here). He was a high-class performer a couple of years ago, notably when chasing home Galopin Des Champs in the Gold Cup two years ago. That form would put him right in the mix here, but I don’t know if what he has produced this season is around that sort of level.

He has quite remarkably either won or been pulled up in his last seven starts. In fairness to him, he has been more hit than miss (winning five of them), but he has been found out a couple of times at the top level, which is a little bit of a concern in a “modern-day” National. His record in big-race handicaps is hard to ignore, however, winning the National Hunt Chase as well as the Irish and Welsh Nationals. Whilst I prefer others, he’s not without a chance.

I actually thought he shaped quite promisingly in the Irish Gold Cup at Leopardstown during the Dublin Racing Festival. He stayed on better than most that day, coming from a long way back in what was his first start at three miles. He wasn’t disgraced in the Gold Cup either, and off a mark of 160 there are certainly worse 66/1 shots. Stamina is a question mark, but he stays three miles and has Grade 1 form.

He went to the top of my shortlist for this race a few months ago after an eye-catching effort in the Savills Chase at Christmas. He got tired in soft ground last time, but I am willing to forgive that effort, while his overall profile gives me confidence that he will see out the trip. He has proven Grade 1 form, having chased home Fact To File in the Brown Advisory two years ago, and this has been a long-term target for one of the best in the training ranks.

Similarly to Haiti Couleurs, he has been a little inconsistent of late. Finished pulled up behind Grangeclare West in the Bobbyjo last time, though he would have more than likely won the Thyestes before that but for a final-fence unseat with the race at his mercy. He was also pulled up in the Coral Gold Cup earlier in the season, but he has national form after winning the Kerry National at my local track in September. He’s 20lb higher now, though.

A good novice last season, the highlight of which was his slightly-surprising win in the Brown Advisory at Cheltenham. He hasn’t really shown anything like that level of form this season, however, and while that could have been a plan prior to the weights being released, his effort in the Bobbyjo last time out was disappointing. Capable of bouncing back, but a leap of faith required to back him on the balance of this season’s form.

Another from the Willie Mullins battalion, which is always a positive regardless of where they rank in terms of jockey preference. I have never really thought of him as a thorough stayer though, and his latest effort in the Irish Gold Cup is evidence of this. He does tend to go well fresh, so the break is a positive, but his form this season suggests that maybe his best days are behind him.

He was a short-priced favourite for this a few weeks ago, but a poor effort in the Ultima at Cheltenham changed everything. He was found to have scoped dirty after that run, but given the close proximity that clearly has affected people’s confidence in him. A good fourth in this race last year will give his supporters hope, but I feel like he would need soft ground to be a player. He’s 5lb higher than last year too - more than some of those that finished ahead of him a year ago.

Has come from nowhere a little this season, with a pair of big wins in the Paddy Power at Leopardstown over Christmas and a dominant display at Cheltenham on Trials Day in the cross-country chase. He couldn’t follow up in the latter discipline at the Cheltenham Festival off a higher mark but still ran well. The Paddy Power has a good record of producing winners of this race historically, but he’s 17lb higher than he was that day, with age against him too.

I actually thought he was one of the livelier outsiders in this race last year. While he ran reasonably to finish 11th, he was beaten a long way after fading badly in the closing stages. The fact he returns off a 10lb higher mark this time makes him hard to make a case for, and he was well beaten in the Bobbyjo Chase last time out.

A likable sort that has progressed with each start this season. He was rated just 132 after his defeat at Listowel in September. Connections deserve huge credit for the improvement they have brought out of him since then, culminating in an excellent fourth in the Grade 1 Brown Advisory at Cheltenham last month. He stayed on well that day, suggesting he has every chance of staying here. Should run well if he’s over those exertions.

He is very lightly raced for a 10-year-old after just 14 career starts. He looked really progressive last season, winning three times and going from a mark of 135 to 152 in the process. On his return, Sara Bradstock’s gelding improved again to only just lose out to Twig in the Becher Chase over these fences. However, he has now been pulled up in his last two starts and so is on something of a retrieval mission here.

Perhaps it’s merely a coincidence, but most of his form has come on right-handed tracks. His only effort going this way round over fences came at Naas last time out, where he finished pulled up. On the pick of his form, notably his third at Sandown last year in the bet365 Gold Cup, he would have some sort of claim here, but that effort was a bit of an outlier.

A decent novice last season, running well a few times in Graded company. While he was unable to win at the highest level, he did manage a staying-on second in the Brown Advisory at Cheltenham. That form has received a few knocks, but a mark of 153 could well underestimate him. He finished a good third behind Grangeclare West in the Bobbyjo Chase and will benefit from a huge 21lb swing in the weights for that effort here.

Won the 2024 Midlands National at Uttoxeter off 140 and followed up with another marathon success at Ascot later that year. The handicapper had his say after that wide-margin win, and he has found life much more difficult since. Finished 12th in this race last year, eventually beaten a long way after being prominent for much of the race, and is 3lb lower this time around, but he still looks up against it.

Another of the Mullins contingent, though he’s harder to gauge. When he won the Scottish National last April, I thought he would have been a leading contender for this contest, but his form this season hasn’t inspired. He ran a fair race in the Drinmore over an inadequate trip and shaped well enough in the Paddy Power when the yard wasn’t exactly flying, but I was disappointed with his latest effort in the Bobbyjo.

I thought he was going to be my Ultima horse this year after his seasonal debut at Cheltenham. Thankfully his finishing effort flattered to deceive once again, as I had abandoned him, though that run means he’s officially 5lb “well-in” now. His jumping has been questionable, but these fences are nowhere near the test they once were in that regard. If ever a horse needed cheekpieces, it’s him, and with a clear round he has a chance of being in contention at the business end.

He was sent off just 10/1 for this race last year but only got as far as the ninth fence (Valentines). He was mightily impressive in last season’s Paddy Power off 142, which would suggest a mark of 150 is feasible - 3lb lower than last year. I’m just not a fan of horses that have failed to get round in this race previously. That is enough to put me off him, even if his poor efforts this season weren’t already.

Having been campaigned over intermediate trips for much of his novice chase season, he finished a good fourth when stepped up in trip in the 2025 Brown Advisory. Produced a good effort on his return behind Firefox (conceding 3lb) at Down Royal and when finishing fourth in the Coral Trophy at Newbury. He’s still lightly raced, and so open to improvement, but I’m not sure his profile is one that screams progressive.

I loved him as a novice chaser in the 2022/23 season, but he’s never really managed to build on that. A winless campaign followed, and the fact that he has only won once in 13 starts since his 2023 Brown Advisory success pretty much sums up where he’s at now. He ran respectably in the Bowl at this meeting last year, and while the handicapper has given him a chance here, it’s very hard to see him getting involved.

It is difficult to confidently rule out any of the Mullins runners, and he is another that has snippets of form that give him a chance here. His third in the Irish National last year was a good effort (giving Haiti Couleurs 7lb), and he was still going okay when he was brought down in the Grade 1 novice chase at this meeting last year. Produced a couple of poor runs earlier this season, but his latest was a step in the right direction.

Another to have featured in the Bobbyjo at Fairyhouse, where he ran respectably to finish fourth despite not being favoured at the weights. The testing ground would have suited him though, and it remains to be seen how he will handle conditions if the weather in Liverpool stays dry. All of his best form has come on soft or heavy ground, so connections will likely be doing a rain dance.

This race has been a long-term target, probably going back as far as this meeting last year when he finished second in the Grade 1 novice chase won by Caldwell Potter. While it may not be the test it once was, his jumping is still a concern for me, as position is vital and any errors can make it harder to hold position. If he can put in a good round, he could certainly be involved. Never ran over further than three miles and a furlong, but his pedigree suggests it could bring improvement.

He put in a remarkable display of jumping in the Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase at Cheltenham to defeat Favori De Champdou. That contest was a good trial for this race a few years ago. However, classier types are starting to dominate this, and the fact that race is now a handicap means I’m unsure if it will have the same impact going forward. I would also have doubts about whether he will stay this trip, as they hack around for the majority of the cross country at Cheltenham.

He might be a 10-year-old, but he has been as good as ever this season. His win at Cheltenham when stepping up in trip was arguably a career best, or at least very close to, readily landing a handicap off 142. The pace-collapse that day certainly did help him though, and perhaps he was flattered by the visual impression. A mark of 147 makes life more difficult here, and it’s difficult to suggest he has much in hand or that he’s still progressing.

Dan Skelton’s mare made an incredible start to the season, winning both the Paddy Power and Coral Gold Cups. If she was good in the first, she was devastating in the second, especially given how strong she was at the finish considering she hadn’t won beyond the intermediate trip previously. That win came off 139, so the handicapper has had his say since. It would be a remarkable achievement to add the Grand National in the same season, but this is obviously far tougher.

He has been steadily progressive since going chasing, highlighted by winning marks of 120, 127, 133, 133 and 138. There is further evidence behind that theory when considering his latest effort off 145 was a career best. His current mark is still manageable, but this is easily the classiest race he has been involved in, and there is a fear that he could find himself out of his ground. However, of those at huge prices, he’s one I couldn’t put a line through.

Winner of the Ultima at Cheltenham - form that has been franked by the fourth winning since - he’s officially well-in at the weights here off a mark of 146, so from a pure handicapping perspective he must have a chance. There are positives in his breeding that this test could even bring about further improvement, and if it does he’s more than capable of going close. The same double was recently managed by Corach Rambler.

Ben Pauling’s 11-year-old has enjoyed a good season, winning both starts over fences before a spin over hurdles last time out. His wins have been by narrow margins though, and as his age would suggest he doesn’t have the profile of a progressive animal. It is also worth noting that he was only 10th in this race last year off the same mark, and it’s hard to see him finishing any closer this time around.

A good record at Aintree, winning three times from five visits. He was also second in the three-mile handicap at this meeting last year behind Cruz Control off the same mark that he runs off here. He has only recently been upped to three miles, and while it seems to have brought about some improvement, this trip remains very much an unknown. The doubt surrounding his stamina is probably the main reason he’s the price he is.

While I have been a backer of him at a lower level a couple of times in the past, a 10-year-old running off a mark of 144, with a career-best figure in and around that, is not the type of profile you usually look for in this race. I would also have major reservations about his ability to stay this distance, so he is one that is easy enough to exclude from your shortlist.