Successful National Hunt trainer Kim Bailey on an “extraordinary” Aintree and crowning a new champion trainer
The 2026 Randox Grand National was full of fairy tales, as it so often is, and this year’s race felt like a proper, old-fashioned renewal.
Thirty-four went to post, and only 16 completed. The rest fell or unseated, and watching it, you almost felt the track had shrunk as there was so much happening, you barely knew where to look.
It was relentless.
The result itself was extraordinary. Willie Mullins brought up his fourth win in the race and his third in as many years. Those four Grand National winners place him in the record books alongside trainers Fred Rimell and Ginger McCain as the very best.
I can’t remember seeing so many fallers and unseated riders in the Grand National. It added to that sense of chaos, but also to the drama that makes the race what it is.
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The Irish dominance was striking, too – of the first 12 horses home, 10 were trained in Ireland. The only British-trained horses in the top 12 were the runner-up Iroko, for the Oliver Greenall and Josh Guerriero yard, and the fourth-placed Johnnywho for father-and-son trainers Jonjo and AJ O’Neill.
JP McManus remarkably owned the first, second and fourth-placed horses. JP is now the most successful winning owner in the race’s history, overtaking Michael O’Leary’s Gigginstown House Stud, Trevor Hemmings, Noel Le Mare, James Octavius Mitchell and Sir Charles Assheton-Smith who have all won the race three times. That tells its own story.
Turning for home, it looked for all the world as though Ben Jones might have stolen it on Joseph O’Brien’s Jordans, when he kicked early, perhaps too early. Stamina told in the end. Meanwhile, Paul Townend was creeping into it, and he produced his challenge to perfection, getting there halfway up the run-in.
A tough 24 hours
Victory in the Grand National capped a difficult 24 hours for Townend, coming so soon after that awful incident on Gold Dancer, who was euthanised after winning the Grade One Mildmay Novices’ Chase.
Moments like that remind you how fragile the sport can be, and however decisions are explained, they never sit easily with everyone. Racing has those moments where we all hold our breath.
But back to the race itself. It was a proper National. Breathless, chaotic, compelling. The sort you watch through slightly parted fingers. Still the most exciting race in the world and perhaps because of that, the one that makes the whole sport watch on the edge of our seats.
A deserved champion
Aintree racecourse held three days of fantastic racing, with huge crowds and a wonderful atmosphere. We all know the Liverpudlians love a good day out and they make us enjoy it with them, but we also took away from the meeting the fact that Dan Skelton deserves to be crowned this season’s champion trainer at Sandown on Saturday, having had six winners over the three days at Aintree.
The way Dan, Harry and father Nick are building the Skelton racing empire, will Dan be champion trainer for at least the next 10 years?
So, we roll on for another year, and the Mullins bandwagon will be back. It is more than possible he will break his own record next year by winning the great race for a record fifth time. The King of Aintree – if not in the next 12 months, who would even think of it not happening within the next 24 months!
● What was your standout moment from the Grand National? Let us know at hhletters@futurenet.com, including your name, nearest town and county, for the chance to have your thoughts published in a future issue of Horse & Hound magazine
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National Hunt trainer Kim Bailey has sent out more than 1,300 winners including triumphing in the Grand National with Mr Frisk, the Cheltenham Gold Cup with Master Oats and the Champion Hurdle with Alderbrook. Kim comes from a background steeped in jump racing and is absolutely passionate about the sport. Having started his career in leading jumps yards of Captain Tim Forster and Fred Rimell before starting on his own, he has a wealth of experience. He trains from a state of the art training facility at Thorndale Farm in the Cotswolds with an enthusiastic support team and an exciting selection of horses.
