Grand National betting: 2026 Aintree Hurdle contenders and tip
Ahead of the 2026 Grand National, Coral previews all of the races taking place at Aintree, continuing with the Aintree Hurdle on Thursday, April 9.
2026 Aintree Hurdle contenders and tip
Bringing together many of the runners from the Champion Hurdle, this looks a really exciting race.
Dan Skelton’s The New Lion tops the ratings, despite being soundly beaten in the Champion Hurdle by Lossiemouth. He is likely to be better over this long trip, though, and will be happy on the spring ground too. He could be a value price if proving this true on Thursday.
Gordon Elliott’s mare, Brighterdaysahead, has the mares’ weight allowance and was second to Lossiemouth at Cheltenham, beating The New Lion by half a length. Conversely to him, though, her form does not promise improvement for the longer trip. Her pedigree, though, might do, as a relative to some smart black-type horses over this and trip and further.
El Fabiolo can be unreliable but is a safer option over hurdles than he is over fences. He was last seen winning at Leopardstown by 21 lengths on testing ground, but won’t be too inconvenienced by this firmer surface. A fraction unreliable, though, he needs to prove he is on form to be fancied here.
Coral ambassador Joe Tizzard runs Alexei, who has improved significantly this term and ran creditably at Cheltenham to finish fourth behind Lossiemouth. Not necessarily bred for this distance though, he looks hard pressed to be in contention for the win, though might unrun his current odds.
Similarly, Golden Ace is unlikely to be well fancied to win this is an out and out two-miler, while Potters Charm and Lucky Place might be better than their double-figure prices suggest.
Coral’s big-race tip: The New Lion at 15/8
View the Grand National 2026 odds and specials.
All odds and markets correct as of date of publication.
