How quickly two weeks goes by when you’re waiting for the final declaration stage for the 2025 Grand National!
Last time around, on March 18th, 14 horses were taken out of contention (three of which did not qualify), and that left us with 67 potential contenders for Saturday’s race.
Following that, Farouk d’Alene and Mr Incredible were declared as non-runners, leaving us with 65 still in it.
However, officially, we still had to wait until today, the five day declaration stage, to find out which other horses have been scratched and where that leaves us in terms of the numbers.
While the shape of the field really starts to take shape now, there’s still one last opportunity, on Thursday, for connections to bow out.
Generally though, that only happens if there is something wrong with the horse and not because somebody simply changed their mind!
Horses Scratched From Grand National 2025
So here we are, on March 31st, 2025, and just seven horses have been withdrawn.
That leaves 58 horses in the running, and the good news for connections is that I Am Maximus, the top-weighted horse from trainer Willie Mullins, is still in, so the weights do not change.
So, which horses have been withdrawn, and what does that mean for the others further down the waiting list of entries for the 2025 Grand National?
Horses Withdrawn at Five Day Declaration Stage
- L’Homme Presse
- Capodanno
- Velvet Elvis
- Minella Drama
- Fontaine Collonges
- Quick Wave
- Minella Crooner
As mentioned above, Farouk d’Alene and Mr Incredible had previously been declared non-runners.
So with those seven horses no longer in contention, it means that quite a few move up the list and are now guaranteed a spot.
They are:
- Horantzau D’Airy
- Hyland
- Celebre D’Allen
- Three Card Brag
- Twig
That left one final spot which has gone to Duffle Coat. Three horses – Duffle Coat, Shakem Up’Arry, and Roi Mage are all due to carry 10st 4lbs.
However, of the three, Duffle Coat has the highest rating, which means he gets the last official place on the list.
Full List Of Grand National Runners 2025
Below are the remaining 58 horses still in contention for the 2025 Grand National. The top 34 are guaranteed their spots.
- 1 I Am Maximus – 11-12 – W P Mullins
- 2 Royale Pagaille – 11-9 – Venetia Williams
- 3 Nick Rockett – 11-8 – W P Mullins
- 4 Grangeclare West – 11-8 – W P Mullins
- 5 Hewick – 11-7 – Miss Tara Lee Cogan
- 6 Minella Indo – 11-3 – Henry De Bromhead
- 7 Appreciate It – 11-2 – W P Mullins
- 8 Minella Cocooner – 11-2 – W P Mullins
- 9 Conflated – 11-2 – Gordon Elliott
- 10 Stumptown – 11-2 – Gavin Cromwell
- 11 Hitman – 11-1 – Paul Nicholls
- 12 Beauport – 11-1 – Nigel Twiston-Davies
- 13 Bravemansgame – 11-0 – Paul Nicholls
- 14 Chantry House – 10-13 – Nicky Henderson
- 15 Threeunderthrufive – 10-12 – Paul Nicholls
- 16 Perceval Legallois – 10-12 – Gavin Cromwell
- 17 Kandoo Kid – 10-11 – Paul Nicholls
- 18 Iroko – 10-11 – Oliver Greenall & Josh Guerriero
- 19 Intense Raffles – 10-10 – Thomas Gibney
- 20 Senior Chief – 10-10 – Henry De Bromhead
- 21 Idas Boy – 10-10 – Richard Phillips
- 22 Fil Dor – 10-9 – Gordon Elliott
- 23 Broadway Boy – 10-9 – Nigel Twiston-Davies
- 24 Coko Beach – 10-9 – Gordon Elliott
- 25 Stay Away Fay – 10-9 – Paul Nicholls
- 26 Meetingofthewaters – 10-7 – W P Mullins
- 27 Monbeg Genius – 10-6 – Jonjo & A J O’Neill
- 28 Vanillier – 10-6 – Gavin Cromwell
- 29 Horantzau d’Airy – 10-6 – W P Mullins
- 30 Hyland – 10-6 – Nicky Henderson
- 31 Celebre d’Allen – 10-6 – Philip Hobbs & Johnson White
- 32 Three Card Brag – 10-5 – Gordon Elliott
- 33 Twig – 10-5 – Ben Pauling
- 34 Duffle Coat – 10-4 – Gordon Elliott
- 35 Shakem Up’arry – 10-4 – Ben Pauling
- 36 Roi Mage – 10-4 – Patrick Griffin
- 37 Favori De Champdou – 10-3 – Gordon Elliott
- 38 Fantastic Lady – 10-3 – Nicky Henderson
- 39 Yeah Man – 10-3 – Gavin Cromwell
- 40 Mr Vango – 10-2 – Mrs Sara V Bradstock
- 41 Macdermott – 10-2 – W P Mullins
- 42 Mister Coffey – 10-2 – Nicky Henderson
- 43 Chemical Energy – 10-2 – Gordon Elliott
- 44 Desertmore House – 10-1 – Martin Brassil
- 45 Malina Girl – 10-1 – Gavin Cromwell
- 46 Richmond Lake – 10-1 – Donald McCain
- 47 La Renommee – 10-0 – Dr Richard Newland & Jamie Insole
- 48 Stuzzikini – 9-13 – Gordon Elliott
- 49 King Turgeon – 9-13 – David Pipe
- 50 Surrey Quest – 9-12 – Toby Lawes
- 51 Cruz Control – 9-12 – Tom Lacey
- 52 Apple Away – 9-11 – Lucinda Russell
- 53 Busselton – 9-11 – Joseph Patrick O’Brien
- 54 Spanish Harlem – 9-11 – W P Mullins
- 55 Famous Bridge – 9-9 – Nicky Richards
- 56 Escaria Ten – 9-7 – Martin Keighley
- 57 Where It All Began – 9-7 – Gordon Elliott
- 58 Pats Fancy – 9-3 – Rebecca Curtis
Booked Jockeys
This week will see a lot of buzz around the National as various jockeys are booked to ride. But only one can win the Grand National on Saturday, so who will it be??
There’s a really good chance that last year’s winner, I Am Maximus, will be ridden by Paul Townend again as he bids for back-to-back victories.
Also confirmed is Keith Donoghue on Glenfarclas Chase winner Stumptown for Gavin Cromwell.
Gavin Sheehan will be on board the highly fancied Hewick for trainer Shark Hanlon, and JJ Slevin will partner the joint-favourite, Intense Raffles, for Irish trainer Thomas Gibney.
Over the next few days, more jockey’s will be confirmed. Hopefully, they will all make it to the starting tape on Saturday, but with a packed week of racing, anything can happen!
What Happens Next?
After the five day declaration stage for the Aintree Grand National, the process moves toward finalising the race’s field.
At this stage, the number of runners is reduced to 34, based on their official handicap marks, ensuring only the highest-rated horses remain eligible.
Trainers and connections confirm their intention to run their horses in the race, and no horse declared at this stage can compete in another race before the Grand National without being withdrawn from the lineup.
The next critical milestone is the 48-hour declaration stage, which occurs on Thursday, April 3, 2025.
At this point, trainers must make their final decisions about participation, considering factors such as ground conditions, horse health, and fitness.
With the reserve system back in place, four horses can replace any withdrawn runners up until 1:00 PM on the day before the race, which for this year is Friday, April 4, 2025.
These reserves are ranked as numbers 35 to 38 on the racecard and will only be called upon if a horse from the original field is declared a non-runner before the deadline.
Horses declared to run undergo pre-race veterinary inspections to ensure they are fit for the unique demands of the Grand National.
And then it is all systems go as Grand National Day dawns on Saturday, April 5th 2025 with the race scheduled to go off at 4pm!
BETFRED
