Grand National Tips
The Grand National is the biggest horse racing event on the planet and attracts thousands of spectators to the Aintree Racecourse in Liverpool each year, as well as millions watching on TV from around the UK and the rest of the World. This is the one race that trainers and jockeys alike would love to win, as it will instantly put them into the history books. Here at Bet UK, you will be able to find our Horse Racing betting tips and previews right here all in one place. Get all of the information you need ahead of the big April showpiece, and head over to Bet UK’s online sportsbook to get betting odds from horse racing events in the UK and around the world.
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2024 Grand National Race Tips
The Grand National is the world’s most famous steeplechase and this year’s running of the Aintree feature looks set to be another excellent renewal, as it has attracted some strong entries.
13:20 - William Hill Handicap Hurdle (3m½f)
CUTHBERT DIBBLE is a hugely progressive hurdler, commencing his season with a 12-length thrashing of his rivals over 2m3½f at Chepstow in January, before following up off 8lb higher over three miles at Haydock in February. Sent off favourite for the Pertemps at Cheltenham last month he ran on late to finish third behind Monmiral and he has a 5lb pull with that rival now.
13:55 - Turners Mersey Novices' Hurdle (Grade 1, 2m4f)
Purchased for a staggering €740,000, the most ever paid for a National Hunt horse at public auction, CALDWELL POTTER comes here with a huge reputation. Now with Paul Nicholls, the six-year-old left his bumper form behind this season when getting off the mark over hurdles at Navan in December. He followed up when winning a 2m Grade 1 novice hurdle at Leopardstown at Christmas and he has been saved for this.
14:30 - William Hill Handicap Chase (3m1f)
CREBILLY looked like a horse crying out for a step up in trip when failing to land a gamble in the Plate Handicap Chase at Cheltenham last month, only finding the resolute Shakem Up'arry too good. He ran in snatches on the day, but was only getting going coming up the hill, so the extra 4½f should really suit. The handicapper only put him up 3lb which is fair and he looks sure to be in the mix.
15:05 - JRL Group Liverpool Hurdle (Grade 1, 3m½f)
With Teahupoo and Irish Point notable absentees, the door has been opened for the old boy SIRE DU BERLAIS to win a third Liverpool Hurdle in a row. The three-time Cheltenham Festival winner might be a 12-year-old now, but he proved age was no barrier when winning this race easily last year, and he was far from disgraced when fifth in the Stayers' Hurdle last month at Cheltenham. Drying ground would be a help for his chances.
16:00 - Randox Grand National Handicap Chase (4m2½f)
Point and shoot is the name of the game here as the winner will need plenty of fortune along the way. Chemical Energy is capable of running a huge race for Gordon Elliott and John McConnell's Mahler Mission could hit the frame, but a chance is taken on MR INCREDIBLE to pull off an incredible feat. Having refused to race in the past he comes with his quirks, but he's hugely talented. His saddle slipped in this race last year, unseating Brian Hayes after the Canal Turn the second time around. He has been kept very fresh since, with just one run this season when an eye-catching second in the Midlands National at Uttoxeter last month. He will stay and if he can get around he's got a huge chance.
17:00 - My Pension Expert Maghull Novices' Chase (Grade 1, 2m)
Hercule Du Seuil commands plenty of respect given his unexposed and progressive nature hailing from the Willie Mullins camp, but DJELO seems to be overlooked in the market. A winner over course and distance in a handicap on seasonal reappearance off a mark of 128, he landed the hat-trick in a Grade 2 at Ascot in December. He beat the subsequent Greatwood Hurdle second and Grand Annual winner on that occasion. Stepping up to Grade 1 company he ran well twice, coming home behind Grey Dawning when third in the Turners last month. This is easier.
17:35 - Weatherbys nhstallions.co.uk Standard Open National Hunt Flat Race (2m1f)
Sold for £120,000 off the back of a fine third in a bumper at Fairyhouse on his debut, MA SHANTOU wasted no time when running out a ready winner on his first start for Emma Lavelle at Huntingdon last month when strong in the market. He is well worth his place in this field and, although it's a very competitive race, he stands out as one who could have plenty more improvement to come.
Everything you need to know about Aintree Grand National Races
Aintree Grand National: Races on Day 1
The opening day of the Grand National festival is a spectacle to behold starting on Thursday 13th April 2023, the festival builds up to one of the biggest races in the world, the Grand National but alongside Grand National tips, we also have a wide range of trends, tips and predictions for every single race of the event.
Manifesto Novices Chase
We start off the day with the Manifesto Novices Chase, which has been running for just 13 years. 12 British trainers have won during this time and the other success was an Irish winner named Menorah in 2012. If you start off your day of betting with the favourite, we would recommend steering clear for this festival as only one favourite has come out victorious but, the favourite has only failed to finish in the top four twice, both times due to a fall or pulling up.
Bet on the Manifesto Novices Chase
Aintree Bowl
Another popular race on day one of the Grand National festival is the Aintree Bowl, in the last 20 renditions of this race, we have seen 15 winning trainers from Great Britain, 4 winners from Ireland and one winner from France. However, France has had just four runners in this race and every single one of them has placed, the only winner came from 2001 but a French-bred horse called Clan Des Obeaux has won the last two races.
When the race first started back in the 80s, it was known as a race where the favourite may be upset by outsiders. However, in the last seven races, the favourite has won five. Could that be six from eight after 2023?
Aintree Hurdle
Another classic on day one of the Grand National festival is the Aintree Hurdle. Following the Aintree Bowl, dozens of world-class horses have won this event in the past, most recently Epatante who dominated the 2020 Champion Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival. Out of the last 20 winners, it is an even split between British and Irish trained horses that have won the event, winning 10 apiece, French and a German trainer have also entered the race but never had a placement. During this time, Nicky Henderson has had 15 horses place, making him the most successful trainer in this race.
Aintree Grand National: Races on Day 2
Before we decide the Grand National winner for 2023, we have a wild weekend of Horse Racing and the Friday of the festival is Ladies' Day! Across the UK, racecourses celebrate their Ladies' day with some of the best racing of the festival and at the Grand National, this is no different! There are a number of fantastic races on this day and you can find our tips for our top picks below.
Mildmay Novices’ Chase
The opening race of Ladies' Day is the Mildmay Novices' Chase. It is a race that has been dominated by British trainers over the last 20 years with British trainers winning 17 out of the last 20 races. However, this is due to the fact that we've only seen 18 Irish runners in this event, with 4 placements in that time, which include 2 wins. We've also had a French winner in the last but in recent years, it's been British domination. The last twenty winners have all had odds lower than 7/1, which is less than 50% of the runners at the festival, so if you're looking to bet on the race, you may be able to remove over half the runners from the occasion straight away.
Bet on the Mildmay Novices Chase
Top Novices’ Hurdle
The second race we've covered of Ladies' Day is the Top Novices Hurdle, once again, this is a race dominated by British trainers with 18 winners in the last twenty years. However, with two Irish winners in the last three runs, could the balance of power in the Top Novice's Hurdle be shifting? Could the Irish influence take over yet another historic race? This has been one of the most open races in history in regards to jockeys and trainers with Nicky Henderson dominating with 6 wins out of 20 but no other trainer in that time has won the race more than once. Will Henderson win once again?
Aintree Grand National: Races on Day 3
As we start day three, we'll be just a few races away from finding out who will be joining the legendary past Grand National winners such as Manifesto, Tiger Roll and Red Rum. The Grand National betting market has been live since the 2022 event and we've seen many predictions of who will win the race since then, who are we backing? Find out below.
Turners Mersey Novices’ Hurdle
Before we get to the Grand National, we have the fantastic Turners Mersey Novices' Hurdle. The race where Willie Mullins has begun to change the landscape of the race, British trainers have dominated this race year after year but in 2015 and 2016, Mullins brought two favourites and they both came out victorious, Gordon Elliott followed suit last year bringing Three Stripe Life to the race, coming out victorious. There tends to be one or two horses that are heavy favourites in the race and more often than not, they come out on top, Ubak (2013) and Reserve Tank (2020) are the two horses that don't follow this trend.
Bet on the Mersey Novices Hurdle
Liverpool Hurdle
The last big race before we jump over some Grand National fences, is the Liverpool Hurdle. With three Irish winners in the last nine years and two out of the last four winners coming from Ireland, the Irish contingent have grown in recent years and it wouldn't surprise many if the Irish's Grand National record dramatically improved in recent years. As for this race, the favourite in the race almost always performs well, with only one of the last twenty favourites finishing outside of the top three. The previous winner of the Liverpool Hurdle, Sire Du Berlais was actually the longest odds to win the race in recent memory, sitting at 16/1. Now, it's unlikely that the entire landscape of this race will change after that race but it may be worth looking at longer winners this year, or if Marie's Rock and Teehupoo race in the event, maybe not...
Randox Grand National Chase
We've made it to the Randox Grand National Chase, the most historic race in the history of UK Racing. The previous season's Grand National winner was Noble Yeats who sat at 50/1 starting price before the race, Mr Sam Waley-Cohen and Emmet Mullins brought one of the most iconic winners out of the most recent Grand National winners. However, Noble Yeats wasn't the only icon in our recent past Grand National winners, there is one legendary name that will never be forgotten in the world of horse racing and that is Tiger Roll who won back-to-back Grand National's in 2018 and 2019, unfortunately, the race wasn't run in 2020 and Tiger Roll missed out on the chance to make it three in a row as he missed the weight allocation to run in 2021.
11 out of the last 20 winners have come from Great Britain while 9 have came from Ireland. However, with the field of runners so large for this race, it is very difficult to predict a winner, many have fallen over the Grand National fences but those that are first past the post, sketch their names in history. The recent Grand National record for Paul Nicholls isn't good reading with just 1 winner in 63 attempts. With four Irish winners in a row, that doesn't look like changing at the 2023 Grand National. Key trends for this race include:
- All winners have placed within the past 22-350 days
- Made 3 - 10 starts in the last season
- Finished first 5 in their debut (1 exception)
Unfortunately, as the most unpredictable race in the world, looking at who has previously won this race isn't the most helpful. Probably the biggest trend of this race is that the winner isn't favoured with only 4/20 favourites winning. In our opinion, the best thing to do when prepping for the Grand National race, is look at the races from the same season, calculate their previous form and see which horse looks best to jump over those Grand National style fences because recent Grand National winners have been the best jumpers on the day and most of them come at a double figure price.
Grand National Trainers
With 40 or more runners in the vast majority of Grand Nationals in recent history, picking a horse to place a bet on and back to finish first can be incredibly difficult. One of the key attributing factors is the trainers. Each trainer will have their own individual strategy on how to win the event, so reading up on trainers who have exceeded expectations in the past, could be an excellent way of judging who will win this years race.
Grand National Jockeys
Similarly to Horse Racing Trainers, Jockeys can be the key to winning and losing a race like the Grand National, more jockeys fall off their horse in the Grand National than any other race in the United Kingdom, it's an incredibly difficult race to perfect especially when depending on the turf and temperament of a horse, these elements are uncontrollable and it's often the jockey that suits these variables that overperform. However, looking into which jockeys are best suited to these races could be the difference between picking a 10/1 winner-losing bet and a 100/1 each-way winner.
*All odds from Bet UK are correct at the time of writing.
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