Bet Storm
RacingBetter News
Friday 4th July 2025
   

2026 Grand National Favourite Haiti Couleurs: The Real Deal or Early Hype?

With ten months to go, both the 2024 and 2025 Grand National winners are priced behind a new frontrunner in the ante-post market for the 2026 showdown at Aintree.

That horse is Haiti Couleurs—and what makes his place at the top even more notable is that he’s ahead of not just two recent champions, but a pair of leading contenders from the Willie Mullins yard. Given Mullins’ recent dominance in the staying chase scene, that’s no small detail.

So, should we be taking Haiti Couleurs seriously? The short answer is yes. Very.

Grand National 2026 Odds 

It’s a view backed up by the latest Grand National horse racing odds, with Haiti Couleurs currently a 14/1 shot—shorter than 2025 winner Nick Rocket (16/1) and 2024 champion I Am Maximus (20/1).

While many of the latest horse racing tips are reserving judgment for now, the early signs are hard to ignore after Haiti Couleurs enjoyed a glittering few months.

The Road to Ante-Post Favourite 

His run of success began at Cheltenham in March, where he produced a dominant performance to win the National Hunt Chase by almost five lengths. The eight-year-old bay gelding went off at 7/2 for the gruelling three-mile-six-furlong contest that closes day one of the Festival, but made light work of the field.

So impressive was the victory that jockey Ben Jones described it afterwards as "a walk in the park."

A punchy statement in the wake of a Cheltenham win, but few watching would have disagreed as Haiti Couleurs showed immense stamina throughout, only really hitting top gear when asked by Jones as the line loomed into view.

This impressive showing in Gloucestershire convinced trainer Rebecca Curtis—known for unearthing future stars from point-to-point racing, where Haiti Couleurs cut his teeth—that he was ready to take on the Irish Grand National five weeks later at Fairyhouse Racecourse.

The Grade A showdown at Fairyhouse was a step up, but having barely broken a sweat at Cheltenham earlier in the spring, the time had come for a new challenge. Starting at 13/2 and just edging out the favourite, Now Is The Hour, he claimed victory by a shade over three lengths after a masterful ride from Sean Bowen.

Once again, Haiti Couleurs demonstrated unbelievable staying power. Crucially, we also witnessed how he managed to fend off an inspired late charge from Any Second Now, who threatened to spoil the party for Bowen and Curtis. However, Haiti Couleurs rose to the task, condemning Any Second Now to yet another runner-up finish in the Irish Grand National—a fitting moniker, some would say, for a perpetual bridesmaid.

The reality is that some horses are doomed to make up the numbers and flirt with the places, while others are destined for greatness. Haiti Couleurs appears to fall into the latter category, and there will be no greater test of those credentials than next year’s Grand National.

Granted, there’s plenty of water to flow under the bridge between now and next spring, but don’t be surprised if the Merseyside sun shines down on the next star of jump racing.