The Grand National is truly the race that the world stops to watch, and each year it attracts a global audience as a flagship event in the UK horse racing calendar. The Grand National is famous for being one of the richest handicap prizes in world horse racing, and its iconic fences capture the true essence of jump racing for purists and new fans alike. The race always has a story to tell from small trainer success, to champion jockey stardom, and the horses themselves are nearing the peak or ends of their respective careers that have all led to one race in Liverpool at the famous Aintree racecourse on the second weekend in April.

Whether you are taking in your first Grand National or you’re a veteran of the horse racing game, this ultimate Grand National betting guide will give you all you need to know before the off.

When is the Aintree 2022 Grand National?

The Grand National will take place at Aintree on the 9th April 2022 at 17:15. This time slot has been a topic of discussion for some time and aims to give it pride of place among a busy Saturday television audience for Premier League Soccer and other prime-time Saturday events, while giving people who like to place a wager plenty of time to visit the horse racing betting sites.

The Aintree Grand National meeting starts on the Thursday 7th April and lasts for three days in total, with 21 races and 10 Grade 1 contests across the three days. It provides a perfect chance for those that won at the Cheltenham Festival to double up or those that missed out narrowly to take revenge. The gap between the two meetings is often just enough to consider racing at both meetings ideal, and while Fairyhouse and Punchestown still have their big meetings ahead, it takes precedence for many as the place to go with the very best national hunt horses in the UK, Ireland and even France.

How To Place A Bet On The Grand National

There are several ways to bet on the Grand National the most common traditionally has been to venture to your nearest high street bookmaker and place the bet in cash with the friendly staff at the counter. That has become old hat these days, though, with online betting options and massive choice across UK betting sites, Ireland betting sites and, of course, those such as USA sports betting sites.

Bookmakers are keen to take your business, and therefore the markets have become seriously competitive with enhancements and betting offers around the Grand National. Traditionally, a field of this size with 40 runners would have been a perfect race for each way bettors to find a horse at a big price and hope they can come home to win or place in the first four. However, it Is common place now to see up to 6 and 7 places paid on each way bets for the Grand National rather than the first four home, and that makes it far more enjoyable for betting on the race and getting a return for your wager even if you aren’t troubling the judge in the finish.

Often, you will find a special sign up offer available if placing your first bet with the best horse racing betting sites on the Grand National itself. Sign up offers and welcome bonuses vary, but Grand National day is special, and you will see the usual bonuses increased around the Aintree meeting that allow you to get more for your spend and or money back for losers or free bets on offer to get involved.

Different Types Of Grand National Bet

Win Single – A bet on a horse to win. One selection and one outcome with this bet. An example would be a £10 bet placed to win on Tiger Roll, and should the horse win, you will be paid at the odds it returns at, the starting price. So, if Tiger Roll was 4/1 and won, you would get £40 back plus your £10 stake and a total of £50 returned for a £10 wager.

Each Way Single – A bet on a horse to win and a bet on the horse to place – known as each way. Be sure to know that this is actually two bets on the same horse. With the Tiger Roll example at 4/1 and using the same stake you would select £5 each way and that would cost a total of £10 stake. £5 to win and £5 to place. If Tiger Roll was to win you would get £20 for the win and your £5 stake back for the win part of the bet. The place part of the bet would also win but usually the place terms mean this is at ¼ of the odds you have taken, so 4/1 becomes 1/1 and the place part would return £5 for the place and £5 for the stake returned. A total of £35 back for the £10 staked. The insurance element here is that if Tiger Roll hadn’t won but had placed then you would get back the place part of the bet and a total of £10 returned means you had lost nothing on the wager. Horses at bigger prices would make the place part of an each way bet more attractive. If Tiger Roll was 20/1 and had placed, you would lose the win part of your each way bet, but the place part would be settled at 5/1 and return £25 plus your £5 stake and a total of £30 back means a profit of £20 on a £10 bet would be yours.

Forecast – Selecting two horses in the race to finish first and second. It’s hard to land this given the size of the field and the nature of the Grand National, of course, but it’s hugely rewarding if you can get it right. You can do a reverse forecast, which is two bets covering the two horses to finish first and second in any order or a straight forecast where you select the winner and second correctly. Last year’s forecast dividend in the Grand National paid a whopping £882.66 for a £1 stake and the Exacta even more at £2,053.30 for correctly predicting well fancied Minella Times, ridden by Rachael Blackmore would win and that 100/1 outsider Balko De Flos would be second!

Tricast – Similar to a forecast as you are predicting the horses to finish in the first two, but with a tricast you are also selecting a horse to finish third, so it becomes even harder! The tricast last year at Aintree for the Grand National paid £8,593.94 for a £1 stake, while the trifecta returned a remarkable £35,431.20 with some horse racing betting sites for correctly selecting the first three home.

The Tote Markets are the pooled betting option on UK racing, and the pools for the Grand National are often the biggest of the year and many online betting sites for horse racing will give you direct access to the pools via their websites. This allows you to bet against thousands of others at the course and around the UK and Ireland in a collective market. Here, the money wagered into the pool determines the prices. The favourite and shortest-priced horse will be the most backed, and the prices increase as the horses below are less backed to form a perfect book of odds and betting opinion.

Last year, Minella Times returned an 11/1 winner and paid an exact match on the Tote at £12 return for a £1 stake, but often an outsider with the Tote is a much larger price than with the bookmakers. However, they are strict with the place terms, so you will not likely see a return on an each-way bet with the Tote if your horse narrowly misses out on the traditional first four places, whereas an online bookmaker can pay each way bets up to six, seven and even eight places if you shop around.

Choosing a Grand National Betting Site and Offer

The best horse racing betting sites will cover several aspects of the race in great detail that make betting on the event simple and hopefully rewarding. You will likely receive an enhanced welcome offer where a £10 stake might be matched with a free bet to the same value or a deposit bonus that allows you to deposit £10 but bet with £50 or £60 for the day itself across all the races. Some will offer money back or free bets in return for bad luck like a faller or finishing second, and it pays to check out all the operators here on Bookies.com to be sure you are getting the best value for your betting on the Grand National.

Check out the best online bookmakers that you have access to with our betting offers page, but we suggest you consider the following before signing up by clicking one of our links and securing your Grand National offer and registering for a new online account.

We make sure to list these bookmakers at the top of our best online horse racing betting sites to make it easier for you, and the chance of you falling foul and not getting what you need are slim based on these recommendations.

How to Bet on the Grand National Online

It's simple to bet on the Grand National online and save the walk on the high street to place a bet in the betting shops. It also saves you the walk back to beat the queues and collect any winnings should you be lucky in this year’s race. Opening a new betting account online is a simple exercise and similar to any ecommerce account or transaction you may have completed online in recent times. Be sure to have a few items to hand to complete the standard customer requirements. The steps vary a little but usually take the following process.

Some sites will require an upload of photographic identification like a driving licence or a passport, which can be done directly with your phone or tablet, or sent in to their customer service team by email. Also, an address verification such as a recent utility bill to confirm your residence may be required. This will ensure there are no delays with withdrawals or future deposits and allow for a seamless interaction that you would expect in the normal course of setting up an account with a company online.

Your account balance will update immediately upon placing a bet and then again once the result is known to reflect any winnings that are due.

How to Withdraw Your Grand National Winnings

If you are lucky enough to place a winning bet on the Grand National this year, your online betting account balance will reflect those winnings with an updated balance. You can access your balance by choosing the account option and then selecting withdrawal. You will be able to withdraw all or some of the balance using the same payment method you used to fund your account and make your initial deposit. Many of the best betting sites for horse racing will process a withdrawal instantly, or within a matter of hours, but some may take a working day or two to conclude. This is a seamless process and works very similarly to any usual online transaction you will have had in recent times.

Last 10 Grand National Winners

Knowing what has gone before in the Grand National can be a good guide to what is yet to come. The winners’ age, the weight they carried and the successful trainers and jockeys involved are always a good starting point to picking the next winner of the Grand National. Here are the last 10 results from Aintree for the Grand Nationals gone by.

Grand National Betting Trends

Many versions of Grand National trends have been successfully used to identify a short list for the winner of the great race. When you are staring at a Grand National race card with 40 runners, it is hard to narrow it down to just a few without some helpful hints as to what it might take to win the race or finish in the money. Based on decades of past results you want to concentrate on the following trends when selecting a Grand National winner.

- Aged between 8 and 10 years old

- Previously run ten times over fences or more

- Previously won a race over a distance of 3m or more

- Currently rated between 148 and 160 by the handicapper

- Have run at Aintree before in any race

- Had raced within the last 60 days

- Had previously been placed in a Graded race

This should help to create a Grand National shortlist from the 40 runners down to a list of single figures or so. Then you can check recent form, jockey bookings and trainer records to find the best horse to bet on at the Grand National or two or three!

Biggest Priced Grand National Winners

In recent times, Mon Mome’s success in the 2009 Grand National at 100/1 for trainer Venetia Williams and jockey Liam Treadwell was a standout for big-priced winners in the Grand National. The nine-year-old actually fitted many of the trends required to win the race but was unfancied by the punters that year and returned a three-figure price and caused an almighty shock. Foinavon, who now has a fence named after him on the Aintree Grand National course was also a 100/1 winner in 1967, but they are few and far between. The lottery aspect of the race is still true to this day with the test of stamina and jumping not a simple one for even the best horses and jockeys to navigate. Winners at 66/1, 50/1, 40/1 and 33/1 are commonplace, and horses finishing in the places at these odds happen almost without fail every single year. Don’t be put off by a big price, if the horse fits some of the trends mentioned above and is a big price that is usually a better bet than most will find.

Grand National Betting Lingo

Don’t be put off by horse racing lingo in the run up to the Grand National and when betting on the race. The terms may sound complicated but are basically just slang for common things, and some are detailed below.

Jolly – the race favourite with the punters.

In The Money – the horse has finished in the places, rewarding each-way backers.

The Elbow – the part of the track after the last fence in the Grand National when the horses must turn slightly right to meet the straight to the finishing post. Shaped a little like an elbow.

Backed Off The Boards – a horse is being heavily supported with bets in the betting market and is clearly fancied to do well.

Pulled Up – the jockey decided to stop his horse from completing the race, possibly due to an injury or being too tired to finish or a long way back from the front and without a chance of winning.

Held Up – letting the race develop in front of him rather than mixing it with the pace setters.

The Melling Road – literally a road that crosses a part of the course that horses run across during the race.

Becher’s Brook – a famous fence that takes a lot of jumping on the way round in the Grand National.

The Chair – another famous fence that must be negotiated during the Grand National.

Foinavon – a famous fence at the National where plenty of horses fell and allowed the 100/1 big outsider Foinavon to come through and win the race having been out the back for a long way.

Drifter – the price on this horse is getting bigger before the race, which can mean that it is not fancied and perhaps will perform below par.

Steamer – the opposite of a drifter, this suggests a horse is being well backed and fancied to perform better than expected by the betting public.

Tip – a suggested horse from someone who claims to know a lot about the race, otherwise known as a tipster.

Grand National Entries, Runners and Riders

The current entries for the Grand National are known weeks in advance, along with the weights, numbers and colours they will carry in the race.

The 2022 Grand National entries, along with their race number, weight, trainer and odds, at the time of writing are:

1. Chris's Dream | 11-10 | Henry De Bromhead | 33/1
2. Minella Times | 11-09 | Henry de Bromhead | 20/1
3. Delta Work | 11-08 | Gordon Elliott | 8/1
4. Easysland | 11-07 | Jonjo O'Neill | 50/1
5. Any Second Now | 11-07 | Ted Walsh | 9/1
6. Run Wild Fred | 11-07 | Gordon Elliott | 22/1
7. Lostintranslation | 11-05 | Colin Tizzard | 66/1
8. Brahma Bull | 11-05 | Willie Mullins | 80/1
9. Battleoverdoyen | 11-05 | Gordon Elliott | 100/1
10. Burrows Saint | 11-04 | Willie Mullins | 18/1
11. Mount Ida | 11-04 | Gordon Elliott | 20/1
12. Longhouse Poet | 11-03 | Martin Brassil | 22/1
13. Fiddlerontheroof | 11-03 | Colin Tizzard | 14/1
14. Two For Gold | 11-02 | Kim Bailey | 40/1
15. Santini | 11-01 | Polly Gundry | 50/1
16. Samcro | 11-00 | Gordon Elliott | 66/1
17. Chatham Street Lad | 11-00 | Michael Winters | 50/1
18. Farclas | 11-00 | Gordon Elliott | 22/1
19. Escaria Ten | 11-00 | Gordon Elliott | 10/1
20. Good Boy Bobby | 10-12 | Nigel Twiston-Davies | 33/1
21. Lord du Mesnil | 10-12 | Richard Hobson | 100/1
22. Coko Beach | 10-12 | Gordon Elliott | 50/1
23. De Rasher Counter | 10-11 | Emma Lavelle | 40/1
24. Caribean Boy | 10-11 | Nicky Henderson | 50/1
25. Court Maid | 10-11 | Tom Mullins | 66/1
26. Kildisart | 10-10 | Ben Pauling | 33/1
27. Discorama | 10-10 | Paul Nolan | 28/1
28. Top Ville Ben | 10-10 | Philip Kirby | 50/1
29. Enjoy d'Allen | 10-10 | Ciaran Murphy | 12/1
30. Anibale Fly | 10-10 | Tony Martin | 40/1
31. Dingo Dollar | 10-10 | Sandy Thomson | 50/1
32. Freewheelin Dylan | 10-09 | Dermot McLoughlin | 50/1
33. Class Conti | 10-09 | Willie Mullins | 150/1
34. Noble Yeats | 10-09 | Emmet Mullins | 28/1
35. Mighty Thunder | 10-09 | Lucinda Russell | 33/1
36. Cloth Cap | 10-09 | Jonjo O'Neill | 28/1
37. Snow Leopardess | 10-08 | Charlie Longsdon | 12/1
38. Agusta Gold | 10-08 | Willie Mullins | 66/1
39. Phoenix Way | 10-08 | Harry Fry | 33/1
40. Deise Aba | 10-07 | Philip Hobbs | 66/1

Fun Ways to Pick a Grand National Winner

There are several ways to get involved with the Grand National without placing an actual bet. Sweepstakes and lucky dips have become hugely popular mechanics for having an interest in the race with colleagues, friends and family. A sweepstake involves putting all the race-horse names in a hat and taking turns to draw out a name in return for a small payment, and the one who selects the winner takes the pot! Also known as a lucky dip and is just like a raffle, with the emphasis very much on luck of the draw!

Many people rely on superstitions to pick a Grand National winner, such as picking the horse with the same number as their birthday or perhaps the door on their house. The names can also be the method, an uncle or grandmother that shares a name with a horse can be popular. With previous winners like One For Arthur, Monty’s Pass and Bobbyjo costing the bookies more than might have been had the names not been so popular with the once a year bettors.

Who is the Favourite for the Grand National?

The favourite for the 2022 Grand National is currently Delta Work for trainer Gordon Elliott and the Gigginstown House Stud, owned by Michael O’Leary of Ryanair fame. Delta Work recently won at the Cheltenham Festival beating a two-time Grand National winner Tiger Roll in the process and since that success has seen his odds of winning this year’s Grand National tumble into a general price of 8/1. Any Second Now varies between 8-1 and 10-1 with some of the best horse racing betting sites at the moment, and Escaria Ten, which is also trained in Ireland, is next in the current Grand National betting markets at 10/1. These prices will change in the lead up to race day on the 9th of April but backing them now might secure you some early value and is known as placing an antepost bet. If choosing to do so some bookmakers will allow you to do this with a non-runner no bet concession, that means should your selection miss the race for any reason you will get your stake back.

Who Won the 2021 Grand National?

The 2021 Grand National was won by Minella Times at a price of 11/1. Trained by Henry De Bromhead in Ireland, owned by famous racing legend JP McManus and ridden by Rachael Blackmore, it will go down in the history books for several reasons. There were no crowds at Aintree that day due to the COVID-19 pandemic and restrictions on large gatherings, but it was the first time a female jockey had ridden the winner of the famous race. Despite several near misses in the past, Rachael Blackmore delivered for the women in the weighing room to banish the stat to the annuls forever more with a perfect ride and success aboard Minella Times. The win capped a wonderful season in the saddle, which saw her also win the top rider’s award at the Cheltenham Festival with Honeysuckle taking the Champion Hurdle.

What Horse Does Rachael Blackmore Ride in the Grand National?

Jockey bookings are not yet confirmed for the Grand National and can change up to 48 hours before the race itself to allow for non-runners, injuries and decisions to be made as to the best chances the trainer and connections feel their horses have as the race approaches. However, Rachael Blackmore will likely partner Minella Times again after being successful on the horse 12 months ago in the same race, but she will have other options from the Henry De Bromhead yard with Chris’s Dream and potentially Plan Of Attack and Poker Party all still entered, though the latter will have to rely on withdrawals to make the starting line. Perhaps other yards will vie for her to be on board their horse. Whatever Rachael decides to ride will no doubt be popular with the punters and a poor result for the bookmakers should she win again.

Grand National Betting Tips

Check out our best bets for horse racing each and every day on Bookies.com, and we will be sure to have the Grand National covered in detail on Saturday 9th April 2022. Many newspapers and online publications will have dedicated sections for the race with previews, tips and analysis, and here at Bookies.com we make sure to use the very best in expert opinion and advice when it comes to betting on the great race and all the supporting action from Aintree at this year’s Grand National meeting.