Horse Racing stats man, Andy has contributed to OLBG for 18 years - An Ipswich fan and F1 fanatic, he also contributes EFL football and Motor Sport opinion.
2026 Haydock Grand National Trial Preview
The Grand National Trial is run at Haydock Racecourse in February of each year and as the name suggests, serves as a trial for the Aintree Grand National. This race is run over a distance of three miles, four and a half furlongs during which the runners face twenty-two fences.
The race was established back in 1948, it was created in 1947 but snow caused the abandonment of the first running, the inaugural running was won by Gallery. Up until 1990, the race was run over just three miles, from 1991 onwards it has been run over the distance which it is run over today.
Haydock Grand National Trial Information:
- Haydock Grand National Trial Past Winners
- Haydock Grand National Trial Trainer Statistics
- Haydock Grand National Trial Jockey Statistics
Why not use the trends shortlist below to help you narrow down the field and then head over to the dedicated Haydock tips page to see which runners are being supported by the OLBG expert racing tipsters to find yourself a bet? You may also be interested in other preview blogs that we have packed full of information, head down to the Other Principal Races at Haydock Racecourse section for links to these.
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How competitive is the Haydock Grand National Trial market? When looking at the over-rounds for the last 20 renewals, the most competitive market was in 2021 when the race had an over-round of 111%. The race in 2007 was a race that was most in the bookie's favour with an over-round of 127%, whilst on average over the last 20 renewals of the Haydock Grand National Trial, the over-round has been 119%, which means the bookie expects to pay out £100 for every £119 which is bet.
Below you will find the 2026 Haydock Grand National Trial Trends, see which patterns have occurred over the recent renewals that you may be able to use for the next renewal, we also have a section that looks at the Haydock Grand National Trial Trend Analysis.
These are the top three quickest-run Haydock Grand National Trial over the last 20 renewals:
- Ossmoses (7:19.80) in 2006
- Vieux Lion Rouge (7:25.10) in 2017
- Famous Bridge (7:28.80) in 2025
Looking at the future form, is the winner worth following next time out? From the past 20 if you had followed the winner of the Haydock Grand National Trial next time out then you would have backed a total of 0 winners. Backing all 18 runners who have been out since to win at SP next time out, would have returned an LSP of -18.00. Remember to use the racing predictions along with the information on this page to find a bet on the 2026 Haydock Grand National Trial.
Over the last 20 renewals, it was Ossmoses, trained by D M Forster and ridden by Richie McGrath who set the fastest winning time in the Haydock Grand National Trial, the runner won the race in a time of 7:19.80 when winning the race in 2006. At the other end of the scale, it was the combination of trainer Gavin Cromwell and jockey Sean Flanagan with Yeah Man who set the slowest winning time, the race-winning time was 8:33.90 in the 2024 renewal.
Haydock Grand National Trial Past Winners
Here are the Haydock Grand National Trial past winners for the last 10 renewals. Each row details the year of the race, the horse which won along with the age & weight of the horse. The horse's trainer and the jockey at the time of winning the Haydock Grand National Trial are also displayed, along with the starting price at which the horse was sent off.
Race Notes: The race was abandoned in 2002. The 2022 winner, The Galloping Bear was later disqualified with Bristol De Mai being awarded the race.
| Year | Horse | Info |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 7:28.80 | Famous Bridge (IRE) 9yo 10-2 6/1 | Sean Quinlan Nicky Richards (GB) |
| 2024 8:33.90 | Yeah Man (IRE) 7yo 10-12 9/2F | Sean Flanagan Gavin Cromwell (IRE) |
| 2023 7:49.90 | Quick Wave (FR) 10yo 11-8 18/1 | Harry Bannister Venetia Williams (GB) |
| 2022 8:10.20 | Bristol De Mai (FR) 11yo 11-12 11/2 | Sam Twiston-Davies Nigel Twiston-Davies (GB) |
| 2021 8:12.91 | Lord Du Mesnil (FR) 8yo 11-6 8/1 | Paul O'Brien (3lbs) Richard Hobson (GB) |
| 2020 7:38.20 | Smooth Stepper (GB) 11yo 10-0 33/1 | Harry Bannister Alex Hales (GB) |
| 2019 7:30.30 | Robinsfirth (IRE) 10yo 11-4 8/1 | Sean Bowen Colin Tizzard (GB) |
| 2018 8:17.70 | Yala Enki (FR) 8yo 10-11 8/1 | Charlie Deutsch Venetia Williams (GB) |
| 2017 7:25.10 | Vieux Lion Rouge (FR) 8yo 11-6 8/1 | Tom Scudamore David Pipe (GB) |
| 2016 8:33.10 | Bishops Road (IRE) 8yo 11-7 13/2 | Richard Johnson Kerry Lee (GB) |
Where have the winning runners come from?
Here are the countries where the winning trainers of the Haydock Grand National Trial have been based:
- GB: 19 winners with an additional 42 placings from 237 runners
- IRE: 1 winner with an additional 0 placings from 9 runners
- FR: 0 winners with an additional 0 placings from 5 runners
Haydock Grand National Trial Trainer Statistics
There are two leading trainers in the Haydock Grand National Trial over the last 20 renewals with both Venetia Williams and Lucinda Russell who have both won the race three times. Venetia Williams winners have been Rigadin De Beauchene (2014), Yala Enki (2018) and Quick Wave (2023). Lucinda Russell's winners have been Silver By Nature (2010 & 2011) and Lie Forrit (2015). Two trainers have not had the best of times over the last 20 renewals in the Haydock Grand National Trial, Paul Nicholls has sent a total of 14 runners to the race without recording any wins whilst Sue Smith has sent out 11 without a winner.
Here are some of the top Haydock Grand National Trial trainer statistics over the last 20 renewals (R = Runners, W = Winners, P = Places including winners, Win LSP is based on 1pt Win and EW LSP is based on 0.5pt Win & 0.5pt Place):
| Trainer | R-W-P | Win | EW |
|---|---|---|---|
| Venetia Williams | 24-3-9 | +21.00 | +23.84 |
| Lucinda Russell | 8-3-4 | +20.00 | +11.40 |
| Nigel Twiston-Davies | 19-1-4 | -12.50 | -10.79 |
| David Pipe | 13-1-4 | -4.00 | -2.35 |
| Richard Hobson | 4-1-2 | +5.00 | +2.90 |
| Kerry Lee | 4-1-1 | +3.50 | +0.90 |
| Alex Hales | 3-1-1 | +31.00 | +17.80 |
| Nicky Richards | 3-1-1 | +4.00 | +1.60 |
| Gary Moore | 3-1-1 | +2.50 | +0.81 |
| Victor Dartnall | 3-1-1 | +2.00 | +0.50 |
Haydock Grand National Trial Jockey Statistics
The leading jockey in the Haydock Grand National Trial over the last 20 renewals is Harry Bannister who has won the race two times with those two winners coming from Smooth Stepper (2020) and Quick Wave (2023).
Here are some of the top Haydock Grand National Trial jockey statistics over the last 20 renewals (R = Runners, W = Winners, P = Places including winners, Win LSP is based on 1pt Win and EW LSP is based on 0.5pt Win & 0.5pt Place):
| Jockey | R-W-P | Win | EW |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harry Bannister | 2-2-2 | +51.00 | +31.05 |
| Robert Dunne | 7-1-3 | +10.00 | +6.65 |
| Sam Twiston-Davies | 6-1-2 | +0.50 | -0.98 |
| Sean Quinlan | 5-1-2 | +2.00 | +3.60 |
| Charlie Deutsch | 4-1-2 | +5.00 | +3.40 |
| James Reveley | 3-1-1 | +16.00 | +9.25 |
| Sean Bowen | 3-1-1 | +6.00 | +3.00 |
| Paul O'Brien | 2-1-2 | +7.00 | +4.90 |
| Sean Flanagan | 2-1-1 | +3.50 | +1.70 |
| Danny Cook | 7-0-2 | -7.00 | -3.70 |
2026 Haydock Grand National Trial Trends
Favourites finishing positions (oldest to latest): PU, (10, PU), 9, 2, 3, 4, 1, 1, PU, F, 2, 2, 2, 5, 3, 5, DSQ, 10, (1, UR), 2
The percentage shown is the percentage of the total number of runners who fell under that factor. High percentages are less appealing than lower ones as you would expect them to do well.
- 20 / 20 (77%) - Achieved an RPR of 135+ (Last 3)
- 20 / 20 (82%) - Fewer than 6 races (Class)
- 20 / 20 (83%) - Ran over 1m6f - 2m7f (Debut)
- 20 / 20 (84%) - Not on GS/FM (Debut)
- 20 / 20 (84%) - Within the first 11 of the market
- 20 / 20 (85%) - Had 2 - 10 placings (Hcps)
- 20 / 20 (86%) - Achieved a TS of 64+ (Last Win)
- 20 / 20 (87%) - Furthest ran 3m½f - 4m2½f
- 20 / 20 (87%) - Had 1 - 9 placings (Going)
- 20 / 20 (88%) - Ran in 11 - 38 races (Career)
- 20 / 20 (88%) - Achieved an RPR of 117+ (Going)
- 20 / 20 (88%) - Beaten no more -25l (LTO)
- 20 / 20 (89%) - Won within last 8 starts
- 19 / 20 (77%) - No bigger than 18/1
- 18 / 20 (87%) - Achieved a TS of 112+ (Hcps)
Remember to use the trends listed above along with the Haydock racing predictions to see if you can find the winner of the Haydock Grand National Trial. Did you know that we have an OLBG Betting School section on OLBG? It is a place to help you improve your betting experience with articles covering numerous topics.
Are you already a member? If not, then why not? With over £6,000 given away each month in the tipster competition, why not get involved? Remember, It is completely FREE! So, head over to the registration page to sign up today! If you are already a member, then share your thoughts on the Haydock Grand National Trial by adding a tip on the race here.
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Haydock Grand National Trial Trend Analysis
✅ The trend factor which had produced 10+ winners and shows the best LSP, an LSP of +48.00 is when runners wore no equipment.
❌ The worst performing factor that has failed to produce a single winner is when runners ran on Good To Soft ground on debut, when backing these the trend shows a record of 0-39.
The course which has produced the most winners of the Haydock Grand National Trial is Chepstow, there has been a total number of 6 winners of this race who ran at Chepstow last time out. The next best course which has produced the second most winners is Sandown, there has been a total number of 3 winners of this race who ran at Sandown last time out.
The race is open to both sexes with the Male runners having produced a total of 18 winners from a total of 235 runners whilst the Female runners have produced 2 winners from a total of 16 runners.
Looking over the past renewals, there is only one stallion whose offspring have produced multiple winners of the Haydock Grand National Trial, that stallion Silver Patriarch has produced 2 winners (2011,2010).
These are the stallions whose offspring have not produced a winner of the Haydock Grand National Trial despite multiple attempts:
- Presenting (0 Wins from 9 runners)
- Kayf Tara (0 Wins from 8 runners)
- Cloudings (0 Wins from 6 runners)
- Cyborg (0 Wins from 6 runners)
- Midnight Legend (0 Wins from 6 runners)
Looking at the winning odds over the last 20 renewals, the biggest-priced winner was Smooth Stepper in 2020, winning for Alex Hales at odds of 33/1 under the guidance of Harry Bannister. Looking at the runners at the head of the market over the last 20 renewals there have been 3 winning favourites in the race. Before placing your bet on the 2026 Haydock Grand National Trial head over to see which other runners today are being backed by the best racing tipsters today.
Route to the Haydock Grand National Trial
Many trainers will target races to use as prep races before coming to the Haydock Grand National Trial, these are the races which the recent winners ran in before coming here:
| Info | Last Race |
|---|---|
| 2025 - Famous Bridge Haydock - 3rd of 9 (10/3) | Betfred Tommy Whittle Handicap Chase |
| 2024 - Yeah Man Ascot - 2nd of 10 (5/1) | Ascot Silver Cup |
| 2023 - Quick Wave Chepstow - PU of 17 (4/1) | Welsh Grand National |
| 2022 - Bristol De Mai Lingfield - 3rd of 6 (4/1) | Fleur De Lys Chase |
| 2021 - Lord Du Mesnil Chepstow - 9th of 18 (20/1) | Welsh Grand National |
| 2020 - Smooth Stepper Sandown - 6th of 14 (16/1) | Veterans Chase Series Final |
| 2019 - Robinsfirth Haydock - 2nd of 11 (7/1) | Peter Marsh Chase |
| 2018 - Yala Enki Sandown - F of 12 (7/1) | Betfred Mobile Masters Handicap Chase |
| 2017 - Vieux Lion Rouge Aintree - 1st of 22 (8/1) | Becher Chase |
| 2016 - Bishops Road Sandown - 1st of 9 (8/1) | 32Red Handicap Chase |
Article Contributor Information
We are blessed with an excellent team of specialists and experts at OLBG. Contributing to creating and maintaining this Haydock Grand National Trial Preview are at hand, Andy and James. They both work on the Horse racing tips team team looking after the tipsters and managing the tips settlement, whilst also creating and managing all of the horse racing event previews for National Hunt Racing.
James Banting
Tipster Competition Assistant
Andy Powell
Content Editor
