Coral Scottish Grand National |
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| Ayr 15:35 Grade 3 Handicap Chase, £200,000 guaranteed, 5yo plus, 3m 7f 176y, Class 1  |
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1 Kap Vert 20/1
2 Git Maker 10/1
3 Kim Roque 4/1F
4 Isaac Des Obeaux 17/2
16 ran NR: Ask Brewster, Magna Sam, Montregard, Our Power, Road To Home
Distances: 1½l, nse, 7l Time: 9m 5.23s (slow by 1m 1.23s)
KAP VERT wins the Scottish Grand National 🏆@Coral | @PJHobbs1 | @Sean_Houlihan1 🏴 pic.twitter.com/G5UEyiuGf1
— Racing TV (@RacingTV) April 18, 2026
Kap Vert delivered a performance of stamina, accuracy and quiet progression, providing Sean Houlihan, Philip Hobbs and Johnson White with a notable success in the four-mile showpiece.
Sent off at 20-1, the lightly raced novice continued a strong recent trend in the race, making just his fifth start over fences count with a display in which his assured jumping proved a decisive asset.
The early pace was set by the Paul Nicholls-trained pair Quebecois and Isaac Des Obeaux, who went forward from the outset, with Stolen Silver, ridden by Olive Nicholls, tracking between them in a prominent position.
Quebecois was the first of the principals to come under pressure, dropping away with over a circuit to run, while Isaac Des Obeaux remained in contention until a significant error four from home saw him lose momentum. To his credit, he rallied gamely to regain fourth place from Chasingouttheblues.
Meanwhile, Kap Vert was creeping into contention with minimal fuss, Houlihan positioning him just behind the leaders turning for home. With Katate Dori weakening quickly and Isaac Des Obeaux’s earlier mistake taking its toll, the race began to open up.
Several challengers attempted to close, with Git Maker and Promontory staying on from the rear and Blaze The Way, Kim Roque and King Of Answers all briefly threatening to play a part. However, a costly error from Git Maker halted his momentum at a crucial stage.
Through it all, Kap Vert travelled strongly, gaining ground at his fences and still on the bridle as others came under pressure, an especially notable effort given this was his first attempt beyond three miles.
Kim Roque, the 4-1 favourite, jumped into second at the final fence but never looked likely to reel in the leader and was ultimately outbattled for that position by the rallying Git Maker.
At the line, Kap Vert had a length and a half in hand, with a nose separating second and third and a further seven lengths back to the remainder, the margins underlining both the winner’s authority and the attritional nature of the contest.
White told Racing TV: “There were a lot of unknowns about Kap Vert today, the distance, the ground, going left-handed, but he ticked them all with credit and it’s opened up no end of options for next season.
“We thought he would stay, we were hoping we wouldn’t have the rain we got yesterday but we did, but as we were here we thought it would help us with next season in mind if we ran.
“He’s done everything right this season and has always jumped brilliantly. Having stayed the trip today we’ll see what the handicapper does as to where we end up next spring.
“I hadn’t thought about next season, but he’ll have a nice summer off before we start dreaming. Aintree is in the back of my mind but he needs to be off the right rating.
“I’m so pleased for the syndicate who own him. We bought him off Ronnie Bartlett (owner of Kim Roque) and he was the first person to come over and wish us congratulations.”
Coral Scottish Grand National
£200,000 guaranteed, 5yo plus, 3m 7f 176y, Class 1
16 ran
Going: Heavy
