Kap Vert won the Scottish Grand National at Ayr Racecourse on Saturday afternoon to confirm a stunning 20/1 upset for Phillip Hobbs and Jonson White. The starting pack had been impacted by a number of absentees, with Willie Mullins’ only entry withdrawn in the build-up to the race.
Mullins had been searching for a third consecutive victory in the four-mile event, but his only runner, Road To Home, was pulled out of the start list. The Irish trainer took the race with Macdermott in 2024 and then again with Captain Cody 12 months earlier.
But in the end, it was Kap Vert, with Sean Houlihan on his back, who peaked at the right time in Ayrshire and came through after the last jump. Speaking to ITV after the race, Houlihan said: “He’s a brilliant jumper.
“I was worried at times, wasn’t in love with the ground. It was tough, started out sort of middle, wasn’t happy, so edged my way out. It’s very tough work. It’s unbelievable, I came up here with two very good chances. Massive to ride another big one.”
Only six horses finished the race, with Git Maker and Kim Roque needing a photo finish to decide who took second place. Frustratingly for the owner of the third-place finisher, Ronnie Bartlett, he used to own the winning horse Kap Vert.
He is now under the ownership of the ‘If The Kap Fits’ syndicate, who scooped up the whopping £122,000 prize for first place. Speaking afterwards, one of the members of the syndicate said: “The coolest man was Sean Houlihan.
“I’ve still got tears in my eyes – we won’t forget this day. Thank you to Philip Hobbs and Johnson White for giving us an unbelievable experience.”
Another chimed in saying: “We’re absolutely amazed, oh gosh I think I’m going to get very drunk tonight… again.”