Grand National Festival 2026 Guide: Race Preview, Odds, Favourites and More

We are only a few weeks on from Cheltenham and we've got another huge horse racing festival on the horizon. The Grand National is here!

Day 1: Opening Day Preview

The Jumps season is coming to an end and whilst the joys of the summer are approaching, for those who are not too fond of the flats, this may be one final singsong for the season. What better place to have it, though?

Liverpool once again welcomes everyone to Aintree for three fantastic days of horse racing and the card looks superb again this year. Each day is filled to the brim with spectacular contests and there are certainly a few stars on show!

We start with the Boodles Anniversary Juvenile Hurdle, where Selma de Vary will look to go better than she did at Cheltenham. A 13/2 shot in the Triumph Hurdle on the final day, she will look to open the Aintree Festival strongly.

Several of the runners that day have a chance, too. Maestro Conti and Minella Study will both face the mare again, whilst Mange Tout will be an interesting rival, having avoided last year's festival.

The William Hill Manifesto Novice Chase follows after, and this could be the crowning of a future star. Lulamba, after his third in the Arkle Chase, will run over 2m4f for the first time in his career.

He has looked solid enough at a lesser trip, but it has been clear that he has needed to go further. It seems easy to back him at the first time of him doing so for Nicky Henderson now.

Following that is the Aintree Bowl Chase, which looks star-studded. Jango Baie will aim to make it a potential quickfire double for Nicky Henderson and the Gold Cup second looks to be his main chance in the race with Jonbon drifting, at the time of writing.

Grey Dawning and Spillanes Tower are the biggest competitors, it would seem. The former came fourth in the Gold Cup and will hope for a better run here.

Next up is the Randox Foxhunters Hunters Chase, though the current favourite will look for another festival win. Barton Snow was a nice winner for many just under a month ago and he will step down in trip here.

Thursday's biggest race is, without a doubt, the Aintree Hurdle. There are some top-class horses expected to line up here, with The New Lion hoping to get his first festival win of the season. At 2/1 with the best horse racing bookmakers, he certainly holds a strong chance of doing so.

Brighterdaysahead will also hope to go better than she did at Cheltenham and is the second favourite with most bookmakers. One that I'll be keeping a keen eye on is Kabral Du Mathan, who could go towards a Champion Hurdle.

Trained by the Skeltons, if The New Lion disappoints here, with Kabral Du Mathan showing up, they could switch divisions, it seems.

Race five is the Red Rum Handicap Chase, named after a Grand National great. Sans Bruit returns here again, seeking a third successive win in the race. He is at his lowest weight he has been in the three years and it bodes well.

Inthepocket will hope to have a strong showing for Henry De Bromhead. However, it would be tough to oppose the reigning champion. Paul Nicholls knows this race and this horse; he may just be the favourite to retain the crown for a reason.

The final race on Day 1 is the Mares National Hunt Flat. A very open field currently, the favourite Princess Day is 4/1 with most. However, the field beyond her is rather spread with 7s, 8s and 9s available before a sea of 12s.

In other words, it is tough to call how this race will go and it may be a minefield for punters.

Day 2: Ladies Day Preview

Ladies Day is one of the most popular days of the racing calendar, and there are some fantastic races taking place again.

We start strongly with the William Hill Handicap Hurdle, run over 2m4f. Many of the entries here are coming fresh and the market is currently headed by a bit of an unknown prospect. Glance At Midnight has recently been moved to the Dan Skelton yard and this will be his first run since the move.

Harry Skelton is jocked up and the market has given him an 11/2 chance on debut. It certainly would be hard to look against him, especially with him looking strong in the handicaps.

The Mildmay Novices' Chase follows and the market is rather split. With a field of nine runners currently expected to line up, the first five are all 5/1 or under to win here, so there is not too much chance for a nice E/W currently.

With that said, it should be a massively competitive race.

The Top Novices' Hurdle sits third in the card, and there could be another star on display here. Several return after the Cheltenham festival with a chance to go one better and the market already has a clear favourite in Sober Glory.

He was an impressive second in the Supreme Novices' Hurdle and it is no surprise that he is a 4/5 favourite to go one better here at the first time of asking.

Following that, we have what might be the headline race of the day, the Melling Chase. Jonbon is expected to line up here at a course he loves, and he is a surprising favourite, in all honesty.

Last time out, he was beaten by 10 Lengths in the Ryanair by Heart Wood, who was one of our tipster's fancies for the Cheltenham Festival last month. The Henry De Bromhead 8-Year-Old is 3/1 with some and it may be a price to take advantage of.

A double headline spot is certainly on the cards, though, thanks to Topham Handicap Chase. With 43 entries currently, there is a maximum field size of 30, so some may miss out. As a result, the market is spread wide open.

Madara currently leads the betting at 6/1 for the Skelton team, Will the Wise follows for Gavin Cromwell at 8/1 and then Gentleman De Mee is 10/1. Past them, the odds grow quickly, it could be a fantastic race for an E/W punt!

The penultimate race of the day is the Sefton Novices' Hurdle. Another one for potential stars, the market is lead by Johnny's Jury, who won impressively at Cheltenham last month in the Albert Bartlett Novices' Hurdle.

No Drama This End, after a disappointing run in the Turners, will also run here and the market is much less keen to back him. However, a step up in trip may be needed, so these conditions could suit him!

We round off Day 2 with the Debenhams Handicap Hurdle, which is for conditional jockeys and amateur riders. Perhaps another minefield, but there could be some value offered as a result.

The current favourites are level at 8/1, so this may be a race for the E/W punters.

Day 3: Grand National Day Preview

Then we reach Day 3, the biggest day of the festival and perhaps the racing calendar, the day of the Grand National.

There can be many questions about the biggest race of the calendar. However, the National is one talked about across households that don't like racing, let alone if you do.

Racing starts with the Hallgarten & Novum Wines Maghull Novices' Chase and it is looking like a great race currently. Salvator Mundi and Kala Conti are the current market leaders, with both representing Irish yards.

The former is the best shot from Willie Mullins and with a win at Aintree last year, he will be looking to repeat that feat over fences this time. If he runs anywhere close to how he did last time out, it may be a no-contest!

Following that, we have the William Hill Handicap Hurdle. At the time of writing, the field is wide open due to a lack of confirmed runners. Nevertheless, it looks to be a good contest.

Supremely West and Lavida Adiva were both last seen at Cheltenham, with the former the favourite for the Skelton team - is it any shock in a handicap race?

The Mersey Novices' Hurdle follows and it is quite a wide-open field again. There are four in the market below 10/1, with each last appearing at Cheltenham last month.

One of the big interests will be Ballyfad, who had a very underwhelming performance at the festival. He has opened at 5/1 with most bookmakers, which may look like a gift come Saturday afternoon.

Fourth on the card is the William Hill Handicap Chase and would you believe it, the Skelton team have another favourite. Although he is a joint favourite, the handicap kings are looking for more success with Mr Hope Street.

Opening at 8/1 alongside Cruz Control, this race is another wide-open prospect.

The Liverpool Hurdle will be a chance to see the Mares Hurdle champion in action, as Wodhooh takes to Aintree over a longer trip. Gordon Elliott is keen about her chances and she is a clear 2/1 favourite.

Honesty Policy, the second favourite, also represents the Elliott yard and he will hope for a strong showing from two of his best horses. If the former wins, there would be some interesting questions asked about her destination next season.

Following that, we have the big one, the Grand National. Perhaps the biggest jumps race in the world, there are several questions around the standard of this race in comparison to years gone by.

However, it still stands as one of the best contests of jumping and stamina.

Looking at the market, I Am Maximus will look to regain his crown after an impressive second last year. There is a lot of belief in him and he is the current favourite at 6/1.

Last year's champion, Nick Rockett, is backable at 16/1, but he has only run once this season and questions could be asked about his race prep. He was a big winner for us last year at 33/1, and we'll be hoping to have another big winner this year.

Finally, we end the festival with the Weatherbys Standard Open National Hunt Flat Race. Bass Hunter is a current 5/2 favourite after a solid third-place attempt in the Cheltenham Champion Bumper; he will be expected to go one better this time around.

Low Kick, Look Me, Diamant Dore and The Perfect Poet are all priced under the 10/1 mark, so they seem like the strongest rivals. With it being a flat race, though, it may be a bit of a lottery.