Horse Racing stats man, Andy has contributed to OLBG for 18 years - An Ipswich fan and F1 fanatic, he also contributes EFL football and Motor Sport opinion.
2026 Ulster National Preview
The Ulster National is run at the Downpatrick Racecourse and is a handicap chase open to runners aged five or older.
The race is run over three miles and four and a half furlongs and the runners will face a total of 16 fences.
Ulster National Information:
We also have a dedicated Downpatrick tips page that will cover this race as well as all of the other races on the day of the race, see which runners the OLBG racing tipsters are predicting to win this race and the others on the cards.
Best Horse Racing Betting Sites 2025
How competitive is the Ulster National market? When looking at the over-rounds for the last 20 renewals, the most competitive market was in 2019 when the race had an over-round of 120%. The race in 2006 was a race that was most in the bookie's favour with an over-round of 149%, whilst on average over the last 20 renewals of the Ulster National, the over-round has been 129%, which means the bookie expects to pay out £100 for every £129 which is bet.
Below you will find the 2026 Ulster National Trends, see which patterns have occurred over the recent renewals that you may be able to use for the next renewal, we also have a section that looks at the Ulster National Trend Analysis.
These are the top three quickest-run Ulster National over the last 20 renewals:
- Ballytrim (7:14.50) in 2009
- Jumping Jet (7:14.60) in 2024
- News Item (7:14.80) in 2006
Looking at the future form, is the winner worth following next time out? From the past 20 if you had followed the winner of the Ulster National next time out then you would have backed a total of 2 winners. Backing all 18 runners who have been out since to win at SP next time out, would have returned an LSP of -8.87. Remember to use the racing predictions along with the information on this page to find a bet on the 2026 Ulster National.
Over the last 20 renewals, it was Ballytrim, trained by W P Mullins and ridden by Paul Townend who set the fastest winning time in the Ulster National, the runner won the race in a time of 7:14.50 when winning the race in 2009. At the other end of the scale, it was the combination of trainer Gavin Cromwell and jockey Keith Donoghue with Malina Girl who set the slowest winning time, the race-winning time was 8:00.50 in the 2023 renewal.
What the expert says...
Andy Powell - Horse Racing Betting Expert - OLBG.com
Ulster National Past Winners
Here are the Ulster National past winners for the last 10 renewals. Each row details the year of the race, the horse which won along with the age & weight of the horse. The horse's trainer and the jockey at the time of winning the Ulster National are also displayed, along with the starting price at which the horse was sent off.
| Year | Horse | Info |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 7:28.70 | Dunboyne (IRE) 10yo 10-8 15/2 | James Smith (5lbs) Ian Patrick Donoghue (IRE) |
| 2024 7:14.60 | Jumping Jet (IRE) 8yo 10-0 5/1 | Carl Millar (7lbs) Gordon Elliott (IRE) |
| 2023 8:00.50 | Malina Girl (IRE) 6yo 11-3 13/2 | Keith Donoghue Gavin Cromwell (IRE) |
| 2022 7:47.60 | Spades Are Trumps (IRE) 9yo 10-5 5/1 | Mark McDonagh (7lbs) Gavin Cromwell (IRE) |
| 2021 7:26.30 | Fag An Bealach (IRE) 7yo 10-5 17/2 | Darragh O'Keeffe A L T Moore (IRE) |
| 2020 7:40.40 | Space Cadet (IRE) 10yo 10-11 25/1 | Mr B W Harvey (7lbs) Gearoid O'Loughlin (IRE) |
| 2019 7:30.20 | Amaulino (FR) 6yo 10-10 8/1 | Andrew Ring R K Watson (IRE) |
| 2018 7:45.10 | Poormans Hill (IRE) 7yo 10-9 11/4F | Jack Kennedy Gordon Elliott (IRE) |
| 2017 7:19.80 | Anseanachai Cliste (IRE) 9yo 9-5 8/1 | Dylan Robinson (5lbs) Stephen McConville (IRE) |
| 2016 7:18.20 | Federici (GB) 7yo 11-0 7/1 | A P Heskin E Bolger (IRE) |
Where have the winning runners come from?
Here are the countries where the winning trainers of the Ulster National have been based:
- IRE: 20 winners with an additional 40 placings from 265 runners
- GB: 0 winners with an additional 0 placings from 2 runners
- FR: 0 winners with an additional 0 placings from 1 runner
Ulster National Trainer Statistics
The leading trainer in the Ulster National over the last 20 renewals is Gordon Elliott who has won the race three times with those three winners coming from Riverside City (2015), Poormans Hill (2018) and Jumping Jet (2024). Other trainers who have recorded multiple wins in the Ulster National are Gavin Cromwell (2 wins) and George Stewart (2 wins). There is one trainer who has not had the best of times in the Ulster National, C A McBratney has sent a total of 16 runners to the race without recording any wins.
Here are some of the top Ulster National trainer statistics over the last 20 renewals (R = Runners, W = Winners, P = Places including winners, Win LSP is based on 1pt Win and EW LSP is based on 0.5pt Win & 0.5pt Place):
| Trainer | R-W-P | Win | EW |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gordon Elliott | 30-3-5 | -10.25 | -13.99 |
| Gavin Cromwell | 10-2-5 | +3.50 | +3.78 |
| George Stewart | 5-2-2 | +7.00 | +3.25 |
| Noel Meade | 13-1-3 | -6.00 | -4.60 |
| S R B Crawford | 10-1-2 | -2.00 | -3.12 |
| R K Watson | 6-1-2 | +3.00 | +2.80 |
| A L T Moore | 5-1-2 | +4.50 | +2.81 |
| W P Mullins | 5-1-2 | +4.00 | +2.19 |
| E Bolger | 5-1-1 | +3.00 | +0.20 |
| Gearoid O'Loughlin | 4-1-2 | +22.00 | +17.26 |
Ulster National Jockey Statistics
Here are some of the top Ulster National jockey statistics over the last 20 renewals (R = Runners, W = Winners, P = Places including winners, Win LSP is based on 1pt Win and EW LSP is based on 0.5pt Win & 0.5pt Place):
| Jockey | R-W-P | Win | EW |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paul Townend | 7-1-3 | +2.00 | +0.85 |
| Darragh O'Keeffe | 4-1-2 | +5.50 | +5.31 |
| Keith Donoghue | 4-1-3 | +3.50 | +5.06 |
| Danny Mullins | 4-1-1 | +3.50 | +1.06 |
| Jack Kennedy | 4-1-1 | -0.25 | -1.35 |
| Mr B W Harvey | 2-1-1 | +24.00 | +14.63 |
| Dylan Robinson | 2-1-1 | +7.00 | +4.00 |
| James Smith | 1-1-1 | +7.50 | +4.69 |
| Mark McDonagh | 1-1-1 | +5.00 | +3.13 |
| Carl Millar | 1-1-1 | +5.00 | +3.13 |
2026 Ulster National Trends
Favourites finishing positions (oldest to latest): (1, 4), 1, 4, F, 10, 10, 2, 4, 6, 6, 3, (4, 9, 10), 1, PU, (5, PU), F, BD, 5, 2, PU
The percentage shown is the percentage of the total number of runners who fell under that factor. High percentages are less appealing than lower ones as you would expect them to do well.
- 20 / 20 (65%) - Beaten no more -19l (Debut)
- 20 / 20 (78%) - Carried 147 - 168lbs (Last Win)
- 20 / 20 (85%) - Ran in 3 - 19 races (Chase)
- 20 / 20 (86%) - Highest Won is not G1-2/LST
- 20 / 20 (86%) - Ran over 2m½f - 3m4f (Last Win)
- 20 / 20 (87%) - In a field of 5 - 20 (Debut)
- 20 / 20 (88%) - Within the first 12 of the market
- 20 / 20 (88%) - Not in a Cl2/Cl6 (LTO)
- 20 / 20 (89%) - Not in a G1-2/LST (Last Win)
- 20 / 20 (89%) - No older than a 10yo
- 19 / 20 (69%) - No more than 1 fall (Career)
- 19 / 20 (88%) - No bigger than 33/1 (Debut)
- 18 / 20 (84%) - Held an OR of 101+ (LTO)
- 17 / 20 (73%) - No bigger than 8/1 (Last Win)
- 17 / 20 (87%) - No bigger than 33/1 (Career Place)
Remember to use the trends listed above along with the Downpatrick racing predictions to see if you can find the winner of the Ulster National. Did you know that we have an OLBG Betting School section on OLBG? It is a place to help you improve your betting experience with articles covering numerous topics.
Are you already a member? If not, then why not? With over £6,000 given away each month in the tipster competition, why not get involved? Remember, It is completely FREE! So, head over to the registration page to sign up today! If you are already a member, then share your thoughts on the Ulster National by adding a tip on the race here.
101 Ways to find Winners in Horse Racing
Ulster National Trend Analysis
✅ The trend factor which had produced 10+ winners and shows the best LSP, an LSP of +36.25 is when runners ran in a Class 4 when last winning.
❌ The worst performing factor that has failed to produce a single winner is when runners had recorded 2 career falls, when backing these the trend shows a record of 0-50.
The courses that have produced the most winners of the Ulster National are Leopardstown and Fairyhouse, there has been a total number of 5 winners from each of those courses.
The race is open to both sexes with the Male runners having produced a total of 16 winners from a total of 236 runners whilst the Female runners have produced 4 winners from a total of 32 runners.
Looking over the past renewals, these are the stallions whose offspring have produced multiple winners of the Ulster National:
- Old Vic (2 Wins)
- Stowaway (2 Wins)
- Yeats (2 Wins)
These are the stallions whose offspring have not produced a winner of the Ulster National despite multiple attempts:
- Milan (0 Wins from 7 runners)
- Shantou (0 Wins from 7 runners)
- Supreme Leader (0 Wins from 6 runners)
- Accordion (0 Wins from 5 runners)
- Witness Box (0 Wins from 5 runners)
Looking at the winning odds over the last 20 renewals, the biggest-priced winner was Space Cadet in 2020, winning for Gearoid O'Loughlin at odds of 25/1 under the guidance of Mr B W Harvey. Looking at the runners at the head of the market over the last 20 renewals there have been 3 winning favourites in the race. Ahead of the 2026 Ulster National why not head over to the best racing tipster page to see what the tipsters are backing today?
Route to the Ulster National
Many trainers will target races to use as prep races before coming to the Ulster National, these are the races which the recent winners ran in before coming here:
| Info | Last Race |
|---|---|
| 2025 - Dunboyne Navan - 1st of 15 (66/1) | BoyleSports Money Back On Every Race At Cheltenham Handicap Hurdle |
| 2024 - Jumping Jet Fairyhouse - 5th of 8 (5/2) | BoyleSports Mares Handicap Chase |
| 2023 - Malina Girl Leopardstown - PU of 23 (23/1) | Leopardstown Handicap Chase |
| 2022 - Spades Are Trumps Fairyhouse - 5th of 9 (19/2) | Irish Stallion Farms EBF Rated Novice Chase |
| 2021 - Fag An Bealach Navan - 5th of 9 (11/1) | NavanRacecourse.ie Mares Handicap Chase |
| 2020 - Space Cadet Naas - 5th of 14 (20/1) | Leinster National |
| 2019 - Amaulino Leopardstown - 1st of 8 (14/1) | Adare Manor Opportunity Handicap Chase |
| 2018 - Poormans Hill Gowran Park - 6th of 15 (4/1) | Leinster National |
| 2017 - Anseanachai Cliste Leopardstown - 5th of 11 (66/1) | Leopardstown Inn Hunters Chase |
| 2016 - Federici Leopardstown - 6th of 13 (14/1) | TRI Equestrian Handicap Chase |
Article Contributor Information
We are blessed with an excellent team of specialists and experts at OLBG. Contributing to creating and maintaining this Ulster National Preview are at hand, Andy and Darren. They both work on the Horse racing tips team team looking after the tipsters and managing the tips settlement, whilst also creating and managing all of the horse racing event previews for International racing.
Darren Brett
Tipster Competition Manager
Andy Powell
Content Editor
