Saturday afternoon sees the Grand National roadshow head north to Ayr. Hot on the heels of the Irish and English versions of the race, the Scottish coastal track steps into the springtime spotlight. Offering £200,000 in total prize money, the Scottish Grand National is the most valuable contest of the Scottish racing year. It is also the nation’s biggest betting heat by a significant margin.
Four miles is the trip for this marathon contest, with 27 stiff but fair fences standing between the competitors and glory. With the runners and riders confirmed on Thursday afternoon, we now have our final list of 21 stars who will bid to add their name to the Scottish Grand National roll of honour. That’s a slightly smaller field than usual, but still more than enough to create a compelling spectacle, with England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland all represented.
Scottish Grand National: Confirmed Field of Runners and Riders
| Number | Horse | Jockey | Trainers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Blaze The Way | Danny Mullins | Ms Margaret Mullins |
| 2 | Quebecois | Harry Cobden | Paul Nicholls |
| 3 | King Of Answers | Derek Fox | Lucinda Russell and Michael Scudamore |
| 4 | Isaac Des Obeaux | Sam Twiston-Davies | Paul Nicholls |
| 5 | Our Power | Danny Gilligan | Sam Thomas |
| 6 | Road To Home | Mr P W Mullins | Willie Mullins |
| 7 | Herakles Westwood | James Bowen | Warren Greatrex |
| 8 | Ask Brewster | Mr S Cotter | Mrs C Williams |
| 9 | Katate Dori | Dylan Johnston | Sam Thomas |
| 10 | Stolen Silver | Miss Olive Nicholls | Georgina Nicholls |
| 11 | Famous Bridge | Sean Quinlan | Nicky Richards |
| 12 | Montregard | Stan Sheppard | Tom Lacey |
| 13 | Maximilian | William Maggs | Donald McCain |
| 14 | Gabbys Cross | Sean Bowen | Nick Scholfield |
| 15 | Kim Roque | J J Slevin | Joseph O’Brien |
| 16 | Collectors Item | Jonjo O’Neill Jr | Jonjo and A J O’Neill |
| 17 | Git Maker | Jonathan Burke | Jamie Snowden |
| 18 | Kap Vert | Sean Houlihan | Philip Hobbs and Johnson White |
| 19 | Promontory | Donagh Meyler | Sarah Joanna Connell |
| 20 | Chasingouttheblues | Jamie Hamilton | Mark Walford |
| 21 | Magna Sam | Ciaran Gethings | Alastair Ralph |
Highlights
Basking in the glory of a third successive win in the Grand National at Aintree, Willie Mullins bids to repeat the feat in the Scottish version of the race, having tasted success with Macdermott in 2024 and Captain Cody in 2025. No trainer has ever saddled three consecutive winners of the Ayr showpiece, but, as we have witnessed time and time again, if anyone can, Mullins can.
Nevertheless, the Mullins challenge isn’t quite as strong this year. With his eye on beating Dan Skelton to the British Champion Trainer’s title, Mullins entered six in 2024 and 2025. With the title heading to Skelton in 2026, just the one runner makes the trip from Closutton for this assignment. That horse is the lightly raced seven-year-old Road To Home. While he has yet to win in five starts over fences, he has finished in the first three in four of those outings, including a fine second in the Kim Muir Challenge Cup at the Cheltenham Festival. The reopposing Ask Brewster was the horse to lower his colours that day, but Road To Home is eight pounds better off with that Welsh rival here.
Hailing from the yard of Joseph O’Brien, Kim Roque also lined up in the Kim Muir, when doing his best work late to finish an eight-length fourth behind Ask Brewster and Road To Home. Fully 15 pounds better off with Ask Brewster and enjoying a seven-pound swing with Road To Home, he may turn the tables over this longer trip. Heading the market in the days leading up to the race, punters appear to like his chances.
Twice successful in the English Grand National with One For Arthur and Corach Rambler, Lucinda Russell claimed her sole Scottish Grand National success with Mighty Thunder in 2021. Training in partnership with Michael Scudamore, Perth and Kinross-based Russell will hope to strike for the home team with King Of Answers. Also heading to Ayr following a run at the Cheltenham Festival, the mount of Derek Fox finished a solid second in the National Hunt Challenge Cup.
With three previous wins, Paul Nicholls is the most successful trainer on show this year. The master of Ditcheat will hope to add to that tally with Quebecois or Isaac Des Obeaux, both of whom boast solid form claims. Quebecois’s three-quarter length third to Johnnywho in the Ultima Handicap Chase has since been franked, with that horse going on to finish an excellent fourth in the English Grand National. Isaac Des Obeaux, meanwhile, relished his first crack at a marathon distance when winning the Midlands Grand National by eight lengths in March. He is seven pounds higher here, but there may be more to come.
Others to note in a typically competitive renewal include the in-form duo of Montregard and Chasingouttheblues, 2025 third-placed Git Maker, who filled the same position in the Midlands Grand National last time, and top-weight Blaze The Way, who is seven pounds higher than when mastering L’Homme Presse in a hot Cheltenham handicap in December.
