Three to Note in the Grand National

The infamous Grand National at Aintree Racecourse is here and Racing TV's expert Donn McClean has selected five horses to take note of for this year's renewal that may be good value with top betting sites in the current ante-post market.

Longhouse Poet (Trainer: Martin Brassil)

Longhouse Poet ran well for a long way in last year’s Grand National before he tired from the second last fence.  

It's likely that Martin Brassil has had this year's Grand National in mind for the nine-year-old gelding since that moment, and that he has been trained to peak on race day. Brassil is no stranger to the winner's enclosure having won the Grand National in 2006 with Numbersixvalverde, who - like Longhouse Poet - was a Thyestes Chase winner.

Longhouse Poet won over hurdles at Limerick’s Christmas Festival and, after unseating his rider at the first fence in the Bobbyjo Chase at Fairyhouse in February, went to Down Royal on St Patrick’s Day and won a three-and-a-quarter-mile chase. That run will have brought him forward nicely and he could run a big race on Saturday.

Corach Rambler (Trainer: Lucinda Russell)

Corach Rambler won the Ultima Handicap Chase at the Cheltenham Festival last year off a handicap rating of 140. He also won the Ultima Handicap Chase at the Cheltenham Festival this year off a handicap rating of 146.

He was raised by another 10lb by the handicapper after that win but will race off his old handicap rating of 146 in this year's Grand National, rather than his new rating of 156. This is because the Grand National is an early-closing race, and horses who win races after the weights have been framed for the Grand National are not subject to penalties. 

Corach Rambler will be 10lb well-in in the National and will be carrying 10lb less than the handicapper thinks he should be. This gives him a big chance. He goes into the race a relatively fresh horse too. When Corach rambler ran at Cheltenham he was racing for the first time since finishing fourth in the Coral Gold Cup at Newbury in November in what was just his third race of the season. 

Fans of the best horse racing betting sites will know Corach Rambler's hold-up style of racing may not be ideal for the Grand National, but should remember his trainer Lucinda Russell did win the National in 2017 with One For Arthur, who raced from the rear early on.

Our Power (Trainer: Sam Thomas)

Our Power is another well-handicapped horse going into the Grand National. The Sam Thomas trained eight-year-old stayed on well to win the Coral Trophy at Kempton in February and was raised by 6lb to a mark of 147. On Saturday however, he gets to race off his old mark of 141.

Our Power has never been beyond three miles and one furlong in his life. He had the pace to win over a mile and a half on the flat and twice over hurdles at a distance of two miles. His valuable handicap chase at Kempton over three miles shows that there's every chance that he'll get Saturday’s extreme trip.  As an eight-year-old, he is the ideal age for the race and, with just eight runs over fences on his CV, he still has scope for further progression as a staying chaser.

Punters should note that it's always a good idea to compare the best Grand National Odds before choosing a runner for the 2024 Aintree showpiece.

Noble Yeats (Trainer: Emmet Mullins)

Trainer Emmet Mullins pulled off a remarkable feat last year in winning the Grand National with Noble Yeats, a seven-year-old novice who had won over fences just once before last year's win.  No seven-year-old had won the race since Bogskar had prevailed in 1940.

Noble Yeats was brilliant last year, but he is going to have to be even better this time around if he wants to emulate Tiger Roll and Red Rum to win back-to-back renewals of the great race. This year he must race off a handicap rating 19lb higher than in 2022.  

He could be up to the task though.  He is a classy individual who majors in stamina.  He stayed on well to take fourth place in the Cheltenham Gold Cup, and should relish the step back up to the extreme trip of the Grand National.

Read More: Claim the latest Grand National free bets on offer! 

Capodanno (Trainer: Willie Mullins)

Capodanno progressed nicely last season as a novice chaser, finishing fourth in the Brown Advisory Chase at the Cheltenham Festival before winning the Grade 1 Dooley Insurance Group Novice Chase at the Punchestown Festival last April to round off his season.

A potential Cheltenham Gold Cup candidate at the start of the season, he hasn’t had a smooth run so far. Capodanno has run just once this term, competing in the Red Mills Chase at Gowran Park in February, where he ran well for a long way before tiring in the home straight.  

A handicap rating of 160 is high enough, but, with Any Second Now set to stand his ground at the head of the weights, Capodanno will carry 11st 5lb into the race. Recent history tells us that getting a win at this rating is not an insurmountable task.  Four of the last 12 Grand National winners carried 11st 5lb or more and Capodanno is a high-class staying chaser. 

It's very likely he could run a big race.