The Grand National runners and riders for 2026 are looking ahead to what is billed as the world’s greatest steeplechase. The £1m Randox Grand National takes place every April at Aintree Racecourse in Merseyside.
The historic race was first run in 1839, when the aptly named Lottery was crowned the first-ever Grand National winner and legendary horses, trainers and jockeys have been making sporting history in the 4m 2f contest ever since.
Grand National runners 2026
In early February, a longlist of 78 Grand National entries – 49 of whom are Irish-trained – was revealed by The Jockey Club. The all-important weights (how much each horse has to carry in the race according to their handicap rating) are announced on 17 February.
A maximum field of 34 horses – reduced from 40 in 2024 for safety reasons – can run in the Grand National, so this field of 78 will be gradually reduced over the coming months until we have a final list of Grand National runners for the Aintree showpiece on Saturday 11 April at 4pm.
Both the 2025 Grand National victor Nick Rockett and his stablemate I Am Maximus, winner of the 2024 Grand National and runner-up last year, are among this year’s entries for trainer Willie Mullins, who has 15 potential runners. Gordon Elliott is also well represented with 11 Grand National entries at this early stage.
The biggest British hope is Iroko, trained in Cheshire by Oliver Greenall and Josh Guerriero and owned by JP McManus. The eight-year-old gelding and jockey Jonjo O’Neill Jr finished fourth in last year’s Grand National.
Dan Skelton hasn’t had a runner in the valuable 4m2f contest since 2024, but the Warwickshire trainer has three horses entered this year – Grey Dawning, Deafening Silence and the sole mare among the entries, Panic Attack.
Welsh trainer Rebecca Curtis will be hoping her Welsh and Irish Grand National winner Haiti Couleurs, ridden by champion jockey Sean Bowen, can complete the hat-trick in the Aintree race, while last year’s Midlands Grand National winner Mr Vango has had Aintree has his long-term target for trainer Sara Bradstock. He will need plenty of rain before April however, as the gelding definitely favours softer going.
Irish trainer Henry de Bromhead made history with Minella Times in 2021 when jockey Rachael Blackmore became the first female jockey to win the Grand National and the nine-year-old Monty’s Star appears to be the best of his five Grand National entries in 2026.
Seven-year-old Noble Yeats became a notably young Grand National winner four years ago and seven horses of the same age are entered this year. The two oldest potential contenders are 12-year-old Appreciate It for Willie Mullins and Ain’t That A Shame for Tom Ellis.
Anyone who loves a grey can side with Gentlemansgame, saddled by Irish trainer Mouse Morris, as well as Hyland, Intense Raffles, Marble Sands, Grey Dawning, Harry Des Ongrais, Resplendent Grey or the Georgie Nicholls-trained Stolen Silver.
What are the odds for the 2026 Grand National?
Iroko heads the ante-post market for the 2026 Randox Grand National, followed by I Am Maximus and Haiti Couleurs. Close behind in the betting are Grangeclare West, Nick Rockett, Panic Attack, Lecky Watson, Captain Cody and Monty’s Star.
The biggest-priced Grand National winner in recent times was 100/1 shot Mon Mome in 2009.
2026 Randox Grand National entries
Here are the entries for this year’s Grand National. The announcement of the weights on 17 February provides further insight as to which horses will make the cut for the Aintree showpiece on Saturday 11 April.
- Ain’t That A Shame (trainer Tom Ellis)
- Amirite (Henry de Bromhead)
- Answer To Kayf (Terence O’Brien)
- Anyway (David Budds)
- Appreciate It (Willie Mullins)
- Banbridge (Joseph O’Brien)
- Beaufort Scale (Gordon Elliott)
- Beauport (Nigel & Willy Twiston-Davies)
- Better Days Ahead (Gordon Elliott)
- Blaze The Way (Margaret Mullins)
- Blizzard of Oz (Willie Mullins)
- Buddy One (Paul Gilligan)
- Captain Cody (Willie Mullins)
- Champ Kiely (Willie Mullins)
- Croke Park (Gordon Elliott)
- Deafening Silence (Dan Skelton)
- Deep Cave (Christian Williams)
- Favori de Champdou (Gordon Elliott)
- Final Orders (Gavin Cromwell)
- Firefox (Gordon Elliott)
- Flooring Porter (Gavin Cromwell)
- French Dynamite (Eric McNamara)
- Gentlemansgame (Mouse Morris)
- Gerri Colombe (Gordon Elliott)
- Gorgeous Tom (Henry de Bromhead)
- Grangeclare West (Willie Mullins)
- Grey Dawning (Dan Skelton)
- Haiti Couleurs (Rebecca Curtis)
- Handstands (Ben Pauling)
- Harry des Ongrais (Henry de Bromhead)
- High Class Hero (Willie Mullins)
- Hyland (Nicky Henderson)
- I Am Maximus (Willie Mullins)
- Ile Atlantique (Willie Mullins)
- Impaire Et Passe (Willie Mullins)
- Imperial Saint (Philip Hobbs & Johnson White)
- In d’Or (Fergal O’Brien)
- Intense Raffles (Tom Gibney)
- Iroko (Oliver Greenall & Josh Guerriero)
- Jagwar (Oliver Greenall & Josh Guerriero)
- Johnnywho (Jonjo & AJ O’Neill)
- Jordans (Joseph O’Brien)
- L’homme Presse (Venetia Williams)
- Leave of Absence (Anthony Honeyball)
- Lecky Watson (Willie Mullins)
- Marble Sands (David Killahena & Graeme McPherson)
- Mister Coffey (Nicky Henderson)
- Monbeg Genius (Jonjo & AJ O’Neill)
- Monty’s Star (Henry de Bromhead)
- Mr Vango (Sara Bradstock)
- Myretown (Lucinda Russell & Michael Scudamore)
- Nick Rockett (Willie Mullins)
- Now Is The Hour (Gavin Cromwell)
- O’Moore Park (Willie Mullins)
- Oscars Brother (Connor King)
- Paggane (Faye Bramley)
- Panic Attack (Dan Skelton)
- Perceval Legallois (Gavin Cromwell)
- Pic Roc (Ben Pauling)
- Pied Piper (Gordon Elliott)
- Quai de Bourbon (Willie Mullins)
- Resplendent Grey (Olly Murphy)
- Search For Glory (Gordon Elliott)
- Shanbally Kid (Willie Mullins)
- Soul Icon (Keiran Burke)
- Spanish Harlem (Willie Mullins)
- Spillane’s Tower (Jimmy Mangan)
- Stellar Story (Gordon Elliott)
- Stolen Silver (Georgie Nicholls)
- The Real Whacker (Patrick Neville)
- The Short Go (Henry de Bromhead)
- Three Card Brag (Gordon Elliott)
- Top of The Bill (Nigel & Willy Twiston-Davies)
- Twig (Ben Pauling)
- Western Fold (Gordon Elliott)
- Weveallbeencaught (Eric McNamara)
- Will Do (Gordon Elliott)
- Yeah Man (Gavin Cromwell)
- To stay up to date with all the breaking news from major events throughout 2026, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website
You may also be interested in:
Get your tickets for the 2026 Grand National Festival
Heading to Aintree? Find hotels, B&Bs and holiday lets near the racecourse
Kim Bailey: ‘The Grand National is a race of dreams and drama’
‘Nick Rockett has always been a legend to me, now he’s proven it to the world’: meet Aintree’s Grand National hero
‘Everything I’ve dreamed about’: father and son team up to win 2025 Grand National
Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round
