Festival Guide
Coral Scottish Grand National Action
The Coral Scottish Grand National Festival held in April at Ayr Racecourse is Scotland's richest and most prestigious National Hunt meeting.
The Festival takes place on Friday April 16 and Saturday April 17 with the big race itself – the Coral Scottish Grand National – on the Saturday afternoon, in front of a crowd of around 18,000.
Top quality racing with the best horses and jockeys followed by fantastic entertainment – the Coral Scottish Grand National Festival has it all.
Friday 16th April
The first day of the Coral Scottish Grand National Festival features seven quality races and some great after racing entertainment, including the Saw Doctors.
The feature race of the afternoon, the Hillhouse Quarry Handicap Chase run over 2 miles 4 furlongs carries a healthy £28,000 in prizemoney ensuring a quality field. Last year's winner was the highly rated Tell Henry from Martin Todhunter's Penrith yard.
Another enticing contest is the Coral Backing Poppyscotland Mares' handicap Hurdle run over 3 miles and also carrying £28,000 in prizemoney. One of the top mares only events for staying hurdlers this should see a big field go to post.
After racing there is entertainment for three hours in both the Horseshoe Bar and in the Ayrshire Suite.
The Saw Doctors play what is fast becoming their annual eve of the Coral Scottish Grand National concert in the Ayrshire Suite which will start at 5.40pm. The Irish folk rockers will play for 90 minutes with a disco afterwards.
Reload, arguably the most popular local band regularly playing the Racecourse will take to the stage in the Horseshoe Bar at approximately 5.15pm for 3 hours.
Prices
| Date | Enclosure | Ticket Type | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Friday 16 April | Grandstand | Single Day | £16 |
| Grandstand | 2 day | £30 | |
| Club | Single Day | £26 | |
| Club | 2 day | £57 |
Times
| Gates Open | First Race | Last Race |
|---|---|---|
| 11:45am | 1:45pm | 5:10pm |
Races
| Time | Race, Sponsor & Class | Distance | Fund |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1:45pm | Artemis, The profit Hunter Supporting PoppyScotland Novices Handicap Hurdle (Class 3) | 3m abt 1/2f | £14,000 |
| 2:20pm | The Isle of Skye Blended Scotch Whisky Novices Handicap Steeple Chase (Class 3) | 2m 5f | £9,000 |
| 2:50pm | The MSP Scotland Handicap Hurdle Race (Class 3) | 3m abt 1/2f | £9,000 |
| 3:25pm | The Hillhouse Quarry Handicap Steeple Chase (Class 2) | 2m 4f | £28,000 |
| 4:05pm | The Coral Backing PoppyScotland Mares Handicap Hurdle (Class 2) | 3m abt 1/2f | £28,000 |
| 4:35pm | The Tam O Shanter PoppyScotland Claiming Steeple Chase (Class 4) | 3m 1f | £8,000 |
| 5:10pm | The West Sound Conditional Jockeys Handicap Hurdle (Class 3) | 2m 4f | £7,200 |
Saturday 17th April
Please note:There are a limited number of Club Badges available and anyone wishing to purchase one it is advised to come early.
There is adequate space within the Grandstand area.
The second day of the Coral Scottish Grand National Festival features the top National Hunt race in Scotland – the Coral Scottish Grand National.
Boasting £200,000 in prizemoney and run over 4 miles and half a furlong the race is one of the most exciting of the season.
There is great excitement as the tapes go up for the big race and the sea of colour that is the jockeys silks winds round the four mile course.
And as the weary horses stream over the last few fences in the home straight the cheers are deafening as punters urge their particularly fancy over the line.
Down the years some great horses have won the race including Red Rum in 1974 but it is 28 long years since a Scottish trained horse won the race – Cockle Strand in 1982 trained by the late Ken Oliver near Hawick.
The big race is only one of eight contests on the afternoon with a mouth watering support card including the Samsung Electronics Scottish Champion Hurdle run over 2 miles with a prize pot of £80,000. All the top UK and Irish trainers are represented here and the winner is always a horse with a big future.
Another great race on the day is the Future Champion Chase which features some chasing stars of the future and which was won last year by the Evan Williams trained Deep Purple.
One feature of the Coral Scottish Grand National Festival is the number of top class jockeys who are in action including legends like AP McCoy, Ruby Walsh and Barry Geraghty not to mention the ever popular Timmy Murphy, Robert 'Choc' Thornton and Graham Lee.
And that’s not all! Top show band Waterfront appear in the Horseshoe Bar taking to the stage at approximately 5.40 pm while in the Ayrshire Suite, the Marauders make their racecourse debut.
Prices
| Date | Enclosure | Ticket Type | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday 17 April | Grandstand | Single Day | £19 |
| Grandstand | Transport & Entry East Kilbride | £25 | |
| Grandstand | Transport & Entry Glasgow | £25 | |
| Grandstand | Transport & Entry Hamilton | £25 | |
| Grandstand | Transport & Entry Irvine | £23 | |
| Grandstand | Transport & Entry Kilmarnock | £23 | |
| Club | Single Day | £40 | |
| Club | Transport & Entry East Kilbride | £45 | |
| Club | Transport & Entry Glasgow | £45 | |
| Club | Transport & Entry Hamilton | £45 | |
| Club | Transport & Entry Irvine | £43 | |
| Club | Transport & Entry Kilmarnock | £43 |
Times
| Gates Open | First Race | Last Race |
|---|---|---|
| 11:00am | 1:45pm | 5:35pm |
Races
| Time | Race, Sponsor & Class | Distance | Fund |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1:45pm | The Purvis Marquees Juvenile Novices Hurdle (Class 3) | abt 2m | £12,000 |
| 2:15pm | The Scottish Sun Future Champion Novices Steeple Chase (Class 1) (Grade 2) | 2m 4f | £40,000 |
| 2:45pm | The Samsung Electronics Scottish Champion Hurdle (Class 1) (Grade 2) | abt 2m | £80,000 |
| 3:20pm | The Coral Scottish Grand National Handicap Steeple Chase (Class 1) (Grade 3) | 4m 1/2f | £200,000 |
| 3:55pm | The Douglas John McGill's 40th Handicap Hurdle Race (Class 2) | 2m 5 1/2f | £18,000 |
| 4:30pm | The Albert Bartlett Handicap Steeple Chase (Class 2) | abt 2m | £30,000 |
| 5:05pm | The Weatherbys Bloodstock Insurance Novices' Handicap Steeple Chase (Class 2) | 3m 1f | £18,500 |
| 5:35pm | The Ashleybank Investments Standard Open National Hunt Flat Race (Class 4) | abt 2m | £7,000 |