The 2023 Scottish Grand National returned to its usual slot in the racing calendar, a week after the Grand National at Aintree, on Saturday, April 22. Like the Grand National, the race was subject to attempts by protest group Animal Risng to disrupt the start, which was briefly delayed, but protestors were quickly dealt with by Police Scotland. A total of 18 runners came under starters’ orders and 11 completed the course. Of those that didn’t, 2021 winner Mighty Thunder, who had unseated rider, sadly collapsed and died, as the result of an aneurysm, on his return to the racecourse stables.
Kitty’s Light, who had finished second to stable companion Win My Wings in the 2022 renewal of the Scottish Grand National, was heavily backed, into 4/1 favourite at the ‘off’, to go one better and, off a 3lb lower mark this time around, did so convincingly. Ridden by Jack Tudor, Christian Williams’ seven-year-old made headway from midfield five fences from home and, despite jumping the second-last fence less than fluently, soon took a narrow lead, before forging clear in the closing stages to win by three lengths. Cooper’s Cross finished second, Flash De Touzaine third and Threeunderthrufive fourth.
Winning jockey Tudor didn’t shirk the shortcomings of his mount and, at the same time, acknowledged Williams’ ability to prepare a horse for a big race. He said, “He’s very different. He’s small, he’s Flat-bred, he’s not a brilliant jumper, but he’s just trained to the absolute minute.” In fact, Williams, Tudor and Kitty’s Light repeated the dose just a week later, when the Nathaniel gelding justified favouritism in the Bet365 Gold Cup, formerly the Whitbread Gold Cup, at Sandown Park on the final day of the 2022/23 National Hunt season. Kitty’s Light has yet to win since, but did finish fifth behind I An Maximus in the 2024 Grand National, pressing the leaders until the final fence.