Irish Grand National 1-2-3-4-5 predictions as 40-1 shot backed

The Boylesports Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse on Easter Monday is as traditional as they come in the Irish racing calendar. For over a century and a half, the prestigious race has taken place at the Co Meath venue, boasting a rich history and folklore with an esteemed list of winners.

This year's 3m5f contest carries additional intrigue as the outcome will be crucial in the Irish trainers' championship tussle between 19-time victor Willie Mullins and Gordon Elliott, who is pursuing his maiden title after finishing second 13 times. The Irish Grand National is the season's most lucrative jump race, with a total prize fund of €500,000 (£436,000) and a winner's cheque of €275,000 (£240,000). Together, they field 13 of the 30 runners, but intriguingly, neither trainer has a particularly strong record in the race, despite their complete dominance of Irish jump racing.

Mullins only claimed his first victory in 2019 with Burrows Saint and added another with I Am Maximus in 2023, while Elliott's lone success came in 2018 with General Principle. Another trainer with several entries is Cork-based Jonathan Sweeney and it's to him that we're turning for our two primary selections in the race.

Unexposed novice chasers are often the way to go in this race, and we fancy the chances of Sweeney's WESTERN WALK (5.00) to run a formidable race at probable odds of around 40-1. He appears entirely untested in handicap chases and is running over fences for merely the fifth time, last seen finishing third to the talented Oscars Brother in a graded race at Navan.

Since then, he delivered a rather disappointing performance over hurdles at Thurles but that can be overlooked as the ground was barely fit for racing and he was eased once his chances diminished.

He claimed a significant novice handicap hurdle at this meeting two years ago and although he's somewhat inexperienced, his chase mark of 135 could prove generous if he performs at his best.

It's his performance in the Grade 1 Faugheen Chase at Limerick over Christmas that truly grabbed our attention. The race was won by the top-tier Final Demand, but Western Walk was still in contention at the final jump, making it an impressive effort.

His stablemate SHOWURAPPRECIATION is another strong contender on our shortlist for Sweeney, who achieves remarkable results with such a small stable.

This rapidly progressing eight-year-old, owned by JP McManus and bred by his wife Noreen, enters this race with an 8lbs penalty after winning a 3m Novice Handicap Chase at Navan last month under a superb ride from Mark Walsh - his third consecutive victory.

The experienced Walsh guided him perfectly to the finish line that afternoon. He's now won four of his 11 starts under rules, suggesting further improvement when facing this even more demanding test of stamina.

He's 19lb higher than when he initiated his winning streak at Punchestown in January, but could still be unexposed, and with stamina being his strong suit, he's a very intriguing contender here.

Our third selection for the race is another JP McManus-owned horse WATERFORD WHISPERS, who remains too well-handicapped to overlook. The Henry de Bromhead-trained eight-year-old was tipped to perform well in the Kim Muir but found himself too far behind in a race that favoured those up with the pace.

He did rally to finish eighth and deserves another shot in a handicap, having demonstrated significant improvement to place third in a handicap chase at the DRF. He does have stamina to prove but off a low weight and with Darragh O'Keeffe on board, he is the sort who could fare well.

Brian Flanagan's Irish Grand National 1-2-3-4-5

1 - Western Walk

2 - Showurappreciation

3 - Waterford Whispers

4 - Shecouldbeanything

5 - We'veallbeencaught