He won the Albert Bartlett at 33/1, ran second in the Brown Advisory, and has placed at Grade One level more times than most horses in this field. Is Stellar Story the type of horse the Grand National was made for?
There is a certain kind of Grand National horse that the race seems to have been invented for. Not the short-priced favourite, not the headline name.
The horse who has spent his career knocking on the door at the highest level, who has shown he can handle the big occasion, and who arrives at Aintree with just enough question marks around him to keep the price honest.
Stellar Story fits that description almost perfectly.
A Festival Win That Came From Nowhere
Most people who remember the 2024 Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle remember it for the finish.
The Jukebox Man, trained by Ben Pauling, had led for most of the race and looked to have done enough jumping the last.
Then Stellar Story, sent off at 33/1 under Sam Ewing, came with a relentless run on the heavy ground and got up on the line to win by a head.
It was Ewing’s first Cheltenham Festival winner and Stellar Story’s first Grade One win. It also marked the end of one chapter, with a bigger test waiting over fences.
From Hurdles to Fences
The move into chasing has produced just one win from eight starts, but the form around that record is more encouraging than the bare numbers suggest.
He returned to Cheltenham in March 2025 for the Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase, went off at 22/1 and ran second to Lecky Watson, beaten four lengths in a race where he was never far from the pace.
Third at the Punchestown Festival in April, then third again at Haydock in the Grade One Betfair Chase in November behind Grey Dawning and Royale Pagaille. He has placed at Grade One level on three different tracks against proper opposition.
He ran eighth in the Leopardstown Savills Chase over Christmas, a run that looked more like the ground not suiting than any loss of ability, and Elliott made no attempt to dress it up.
Back at Fairyhouse in February, he finished third in the Bobbjo Chase over three miles and two furlongs behind Grangeclare West.
He was beaten fourteen lengths, which is not a figure that dazzles, but he jumped his fences cleanly and stayed on into the places.
The winner that day is one of the leading fancies for the National, which gives some perspective on the form.
Does He Have A Serious Chance Of Winning?
At nine years old, Stellar Story sits at the very peak of the age range that Grand National winners have come from over the past two decades.
Nine is the strongest single age for National winners, and the form book suggests horses at this stage of their career have the experience to handle a big field while still having enough left in the tank.
The weight of 10st 11lb is genuinely attractive. The majority of winners over the past twenty years have been weighted between 10st 10lb and 11st 6lb, and Stellar Story sits at the bottom of that range rather than the top.
His form at the top level satisfies the chase experience requirement. He has won over hurdles at three miles, won at Grade One level, and placed repeatedly.
The one note of caution is that his best form has come in testing conditions. His Albert Bartlett win came on heavy ground, and the Savills Chase in December on quicker going produced his worst run of the season.
The Case for Each Way
He is now 25/1 for the Grand National, a price that sits squarely within the range from which 60 percent of National winners have come over the past two decades.
He stays the trip. He jumps adequately. He has shown up on the big stage more than once. His trainer knows Aintree as well as anyone, and Gigginstown colours have been carried to victory in this race before.
The Grand National has a habit of rewarding horses who have been quietly building towards something. Stellar Story has the age, the weight, the class and the track record of showing up on the biggest days.
Gordon Elliott will have had this race in mind for a while, and at 25/1 there is enough of a case here to warrant a place on your each-way shortlist before the off.
BETFRED
