The Grand National of 2026 is now in the history books and what a contest it was. What emerged from the mass of chaos was one of the great Grand National performances from the Willie Mullins-trained and Paul Townend-ridden I Am Maximus to become the first horse to regain the trophy since the great Red Rum.
Mullins underlined his GOAT status by delivering I Am Maximus back to his third Grand National to produce a career-best effort in victory. If someone had said this horse would become a Grand National great after watching him blunder through his novice chase season in 2022/23, you’d have struggled to believe them. For Mullins to have orchestrated three consecutive campaigns that have seen him peak on the day that mattered most, and to return with such enthusiasm each year, is quite something.
With Mullins’s preparation complete and the runners assembled at the start, last Saturday became about two individuals working as one: I Am Maximus and Paul Townend. The horse has his own way of jumping, but Townend understands it and makes the best of whatever odd shape I Am Maximus chooses to take over his fences. Townend has been there and done it in this race, but the confidence he showed to sit and sit as the race heated up was incredible to watch.
For I Am Maximus to produce a power-packed finish off top weight and a rating of 168 was sensational. Traditionalists will argue about comparisons with past greats, but what horses like Tiger Roll and I Am Maximus have achieved in recent times is at least as demanding in its own way. The jumping test was immeasurably greater in earlier eras, yes, but the modern race’s lesser jumping emphasis has made it a substantially more competitive and high-class event than Grand Nationals of decades ago.
This isn’t a race to find the best jumper or even the singularly best horse, but to find the best-handicapped horse on the day — and there are very few genuine no-hopers in a modern Grand National. For I Am Maximus and Tiger Roll to beat such massive, highly competitive fields repeatedly is remarkable.
The 2024 and 2025 renewals were notable for having hardly any fallers or unseats, a fact that split opinion between those who welcomed the safety and those who missed old-style mayhem. The 2026 renewal reminded us that, despite fence redesigns and reduced field sizes, uncertainty and drama remain. Seven fallers and seven unseats produced a dramatic spectacle, with many fancied runners giving their supporters only brief hope before exiting.
Track design has focused on capturing loose horses in holding pens, but several loose horses still evaded those measures and added trepidation throughout the race. Older viewers will hold firm opinions about the modern Grand National, but a younger spectator whose experience is only of the newer version likely felt they got what they were promised: one of the most exciting 10 minutes in sport.
The old Grand National is gone — in truth it has been for decades — and dwelling on it is fruitless. What remains is still the most high-profile, high-risk and exhilarating National Hunt race on the planet. Some will always live in the past, and they are entitled to do so, but the rest of us can enjoy what remains one of sport’s great spectacles.