Grand National Festival 2026: Best Bets for Day 1

The Grand National begins on Thursday and BettingLounge's racing expert Ben has gone through some of his favourite bets for the day, putting them in one place for you.

So, let's just dive in.

🥇 Best Bet

My Best Bet comes in the Manifesto Novices' Chase, where I think Lulamba can show his star quality. In my eyes, it is not a massively strong race. So, I think class would take him through if it were another race over two miles.

However, this step up in trip should suit him fantastically and it will be a great chance to see just how good he is. So far, he has not really had the best conditions to succeed and there can be few excuses if he does not perform this time.

With that said, I don't think excuses will be needed. There is a reason why he is 4/6 and as boring as it may be, I think he should win comfortably.

🥈 Next Best

I'm sticking with Nicky Henderson for the race directly afterwards, which is the Aintree Bowl. Run over 3m 1f, this should be a lovely race for Jango Baie to finally get his gold medal in a big one.

Fourth in the King George and second in the Gold Cup last time out, he has had some tough races this year, facing some of the best horses in the UK and Ireland.

When he lines up for the Bowl, he will not face anywhere near the same level of quality. It would be naive to suggest that there are no horses with talent in the race.

He definitely has the quality and class to win here and Henderson should be having a quickfire double, which is currently priced at around 2.5/1. I wouldn't be completely against it, put it that way.

👀 Longshot

For my final pick, I'm looking at the Aintree Hurdle. It is the equivalent of the Cheltenham Champion Hurdle and the field is quite similar, albeit with the noticeable omission of last year's winner and the new Champion Hurdler, Lossiemouth.

I thought Golden Ace should've done better at Cheltenham and I am not ready to turn my back on the mare here. She is currently 14/1 with Bet365 and whilst there are better prices available, this is the biggest with three E/W places.

The pace here may be a little slower and that would suit her, I feel, for a place at the very least. Like I say, 14/1 looks too big...

Good luck with your picks, and let us know if you back any of our selections on X @BetLoungeTips!