A field of 21 take to Ayr this weekend for the 2026 Scottish Grand National.
The 2026 Scottish Grand National has arrived and the storylines are stacking up already.
Willie Mullins, who has dominated recent renewals, relies on just one runner in Road To Home, while Dan Skelton is notably absent despite leading the trainers’ championship.
A wave of horses that ran at Aintree withdrawing at the five-stage-confirmation has elevated Blaze The Way to topweight, further altering the handicap picture, while Cheltenham Festival form looms large through contenders such as King Of Answers, Quebecois, Ask Brewster and Road To Home.
The race also carries a strong UK versus Ireland narrative, with a field of leading hopes, including Scotland’s flagship contender King Of Answers, Paul Nicholls’ pair Quebecois and Isaac Des Obeaux, and the progressive novice Kim Roque.
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Scottish Grand National 2026 Odds
| Horse | Best Odds |
|---|---|
| Kim Roque | 11/2 |
| King Of Answers | 13/2 |
| Road To Home | 8/1 |
| Montregard | 9/1 |
| Quebecois | 9/1 |
| Isaac Des Obeaux | 10/1 |
Updated on 17/04/2026 at 11:45.
Who is the favourite to win the Scottish Grand National 2026?
The 2026 Scottish Grand National is headed by a tightly bunched trio at the top of the market, with Kim Roque (11/2), King Of Answers (13/2) and Road To Home (8/1) all arriving with strong profiles.
Best odds available with William Hill at the time of publishing.
Kim Roque represents the progressive novice angle after a staying-on fourth in the Kim Muir at Cheltenham, carrying a light weight that fits the historical trends for this marathon test.
King Of Answers sets the standard on form, having finished a powerful second in the National Hunt Chase and now looks the leading home hope for Lucinda Russell, though his jumping remains a slight variable over such a demanding trip.
Road To Home adds an Irish angle as Willie Mullins’ sole runner, narrowly denied in the Kim Muir and carrying the stable’s recent dominance in the race, but he still has stamina questions to answer over four miles.
When is the Scottish Grand National 2026?
The 2026 Scottish Grand National takes place on Saturday, 18 April 2026 at Ayr Racecourse, with the feature race scheduled to go off at 15:35 (3:35pm BST).
It headlines the second day of the Scottish Grand National Festival, following Ladies Day on Friday 17 April.
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Scottish Grand National Past Winners
| Year | Winner | Odds | Jockey | Trainer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Captain Cody | 9/1 | Harry Cobden | Willie Mullins |
| 2024 | Macdermott | 18/1 | Danny Mullins | Willie Mullins |
| 2023 | Kitty’s Light | 4/1 (JF) | Jack Tudor | Christian Williams |
| 2022 | Win My Wings | 13/2 (CF) | Rob James | Christian Williams |
| 2021 | Mighty Thunder | 8/1 | Tom Scudamore | Lucinda Russell |
- 2020 – No race
- 2019 – Takingrisks
- 2018 – Joe Farrell
- 2017 – Vicente (back-to-back winner)
- 2016 – Vicente
- 2015 – Wayward Prince
- 2014 – Al Co
- 2013 – Godsmejudge
Scottish Grand National 2026 Betting Stats
| Horse | % of Bets | Odds |
|---|---|---|
| Montregard | 12.06% | 9/1 |
| Chasingouttheblues | 10.28% | 12/1 |
| Promontory | 9.16% | 20/1 |
| Kim Roque | 8.50% | 11/2 |
| King Of Answers | 7.66% | 13/2 |
| Road To Home | 7.48% | 8/1 |
| Maximilian | 5.98% | 28/1 |
| Isaac Des Obeaux | 5.89% | 11/1 |
| Git Maker | 5.70% | 18/1 |
| Herakles Westwood | 4.77% | 22/1 |
The table above shows the percentage of bets taken though oddschecker since the declarations stage on Thursday for the Scottish Grand National.
Montregard heads the trio in terms of market support since declarations, accounting for 12.06% of all bets, and it’s easy to see why punters have latched on. A winner of the Swinley Handicap Chase at Ascot, he arrives in the right sort of progressive profile for a staying handicap of this nature, with his Ascot performance marking him out as a horse still on the upgrade for JP McManus and Tom Lacey. While untested at the extreme four-mile trip, his strong-finishing style suggests he’s built for a proper stamina test and that has clearly not gone unnoticed in the market.
Chasingouttheblues has also been well found, attracting 10.28% of bets, and represents the more solid, grinder type that often runs well in these Nationals without necessarily being flashy. Trained by Mark Walford, he’s been steadily progressive in staying handicaps and looks exactly the sort who will keep responding when others are coming under pressure. There’s nothing glamorous about his profile, but there rarely is in a race like this, and the market support suggests punters trust his reliability over marathon trips.
Promontory completes the trio with 9.16% of bets, despite being the biggest price at 20/1, which tells its own story from an each-way perspective. Still relatively unexposed for Sarah Joanna Connell, he brings the profile of a lightly raced stayer who could easily take another step forward now asked for this sort of extreme test. He’s clearly not short of ability, but the key question is whether he’s ready for a test of this magnitude, although the betting suggests plenty are willing to take that chance.
Scottish Grand National 2026 Trends
- 22/22 – Last ran 57 days or less ago
- 19/22 – Finished in the top 6 last time out
- 18/22 – Carried 11-1 or less
- 18/22 – Aged 8 or older
- 17/22 – French or Irish bred
- 15/22 – Finished in the first three last time out
- 15/22 – Had won over 3m or further
- 15/22 – Last raced between 30–57 days ago
- 14/22 – Aged 8–10 years old
- 14/22 – Carried 10-9 or less
- 14/22 – Returned a double-figure price in the betting
- 14/22 – Came from the first 7 in the betting market
- 8/22 – Won last time out
- 7/22 – Won at Ayr before
