John Burke

John Burke

I have a MA in International Politics and having spent a number of years working in political campaigning but I eventually I realised that politics was not the world where I wanted to work I had been interested in horse racing since the late 1980s but in the early years I was merely just betting and watching racing like most people as a bit of fun and a hobby, then the hobby becomes a passion and that’s what happened to me with horse racing. I soon realised that to make money from my hobby I had to learn as much as I could about the sport and betting in general. The whole process took time but after a number of successful years of betting, I decided in 2011 to take the plunge, gave up my full time day job and decided to bet on horse racing as a part time business and I haven’t looked back since. I like to specialise in the better class of races and I love to solve the puzzles posed by big field handicaps the latter races often provide punters with great value betting opportunities. Whilst most of my time is spent reviewing previous races I like to keep things as simple as possible as even the biggest field handicaps can usually be pruned down to half a dozen strong contenders with the right sort of approach.
  • Dec- 2017 -
    19 December
    Newshorse racing

    Weekly Eye-Catchers – Horse Racing

    Hi all, Jump racing has this cruel habit of managing to spoil a big race with a tragedy. We saw evidence of this again on Saturday at Cheltenham as the David Pipe-trained Starchitect, who had run such a good race to finish second in the BetVictor Gold Cup at the last meeting, had jumped his way to the front and…

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  • 16 December
    News

    Micro-Angles – Weekend Big Race Previews

    I will start by identifying some trainer track stats to note for the weekend’s action, before looking at some of the key trends for two of the big handicaps at Cheltenham on Saturday. Cheltenham 1:55 – Caspian Caviar Gold Cup – 2m 5f Let’s begin by having a look at some of the key trends and stats for Saturday’s Caspian…

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  • 14 December
    News

    Micro-Angles – Trainers – Handicaps

    Hi all, This weekend we have the two day Cheltenham’s International Meeting which starts on Friday and features the latest running of the Caspian Caviar Gold on Saturday. Once again I have plenty to get through and, I like last week, I will start by identifying some trainer track stats to note for the weekend’s action, before looking at some…

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  • 13 December
    News

    Micro-Angles – Weekend Trainer Track Stats

    Cheltenham International Meeting I will begin with some trainer stats from Cheltenham’s International Meeting. The figures for the meeting are from 2012 to 2016 and consist of 70 winners from 618 runners 174 placed. Below are the top five trainers in terms of the number of winners, two notable trainers with negative records at this festival and three interesting trainers…

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  • 12 December
    Newshorse racing

    Weekly Eye-Catchers – Horse Racing

    Hi all, No, I am not referring to the cricket down under but to the fact, this is my 133rd Eyecatcher article for Race Advisor. It’s been a tough few months for the Eyecatcher Pro Service but thankfully the corner looks to have turned, with a healthy profit made since November 1st. Last weeks article was another success for the trainer…

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  • 7 December
    News

    Micro-Angles – Weekend Big Race Trends And Previews

    Here are some of the key trends for the two big Aintree handicaps over the National fences. Aintree – Saturday 2nd December Let’s have a look at some of the key trends and stats for the two big handicaps chases at Aintree. Becher Handicap Chase – 3m 2f Last years race was won by the David Pipe-trained Vieux Lion Rouge…

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  • 6 December
    News

    Micro-Angles – Weekend Trainer Track Stats

    Hi all, After the Ladbrokes Newbury Winter Carnival, the horse racing action continues apace this weekend with the Tingle Creek Day at Sandown and not one, but two races over Aintree’s National fences on Saturday with the Becher Chase and Grand Sefton Chase the highlight of that card. Plenty to get through this week and there is plenty for you stats…

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  • 5 December
    Newshorse racing

    Weekly Eye-Catchers – Horse Racing

    Can A Ten-Year-Old Win The Gold Cup? Total Recall won the Ladbrokes Trophy for Willie Mullins as he just got the better of the Nicky Henderson trained Whisper in a thrilling finish with the pair pulling clear of the rest of the field. The form looks solid. Taking nothing away from the well-handicapped winner but the runner-up comes out of the…

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  • 2 December
    News

    Micro-Angles – Weekend Big Race Preview & Newbury Stats

    Newbury – Ladbrokes Trophy Chase – 3m 2f Saturday’s biggest race and arguably the second best handicap chase of the season behind the Grand National is the race formerly known as the Hennessey Gold Cup. Last years renewal was won by the Colin Tizzard trained Native River who was sent off at odds of 7/2. Four of the last five…

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  • Nov- 2017 -
    30 November
    News

    Micro-Angles – Profile Horse & Jockeys and Trainers To Note

    This week’s horse in profile is the Venetia Williams trained chaser Otago Trail. The 9-year-old has yet to make his seasonal reappearance but did win on his first start of last season when beating Bristol De Mai to land the 3m Rehearsal Chase at Newcastle 12 months ago before ending his season in February when winning 3m handicap chase at…

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  • 29 November
    News

    Micro-Angles – Trainers to Note in December

    Hi all, Friday see’s the start of two tremendous day horse racing at Newbury which culminates in the first running of the Ladbrokes Trophy Handicap Chase which is effectively the old Hennessey Gold Cup but with a new sponsor. Plenty to get through this week and lots for stats fans to digest, so let’s crack on. So what can you expect…

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  • 28 November
    News
    horse racing

    Weekly Eye-Catchers – Horse Racing

    Hi all, Bristol De Mai Blows Away Rivals But Won’t Win A Gold Cup! Bristol De Mai is one of those horses not only does he handle the mud he relishes it. His win in the Grade 1 Betfair Chase now means he has produced his best two performances on Racing Post Ratings at Haydock on testing ground. His trainer…

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  • 25 November
    News

    Saturday Preview – Big Race Trends

    It’s Betfair Chase Day at Haydock on Saturday but that’s not the big race I will be focusing in on. Instead, I am looking at one of the handicaps that make up an excellent supporting card. Haydock 2:25 – Betfair Stayers’ Handicap Hurdle (Grade 3) (Class 1) – 2m 7f This used to be known as the Fixed Brush hurdle…

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  • 23 November
    News

    Micro-Angles – Profile Horse

    This week’s horse in profile is the Jessica Harrington trained, staying handicap hurdler, Oscar Sam. The 8-year-old wins his fair share of races with a career record of – 5 wins from 24 runs Strike Rate 21% SP Profit +0.38 10 placed Place Strike Rate 42% His time of year is definitely coming up as all his career wins have come…

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  • 22 November
    News

    Micro-Angle – Trainers to Note in the Next 7 Days

    Hi all, Last weekend saw the first big handicap races of the winter jump season with the BetVictor Gold Cup, I can remember when the race was called the ‘Mackeson’ Gold Cup, and the Greatwood Handicap Hurdle. Between now and Christmas there seems to be a big handicap every Saturday. Over the past two weeks, I gave you a couple…

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  • 21 November
    News
    horse racing

    Weekly Eye-Catchers – Horse Racing

    Hi all, Well, the first big handicap of the winter jumps season took place at Cheltenham on Saturday with the latest running of the BetVictor Gold Cup. There was plenty of rain around on Saturday and the going which had been good to soft on Friday had changed to soft, heavy in places by race four. The race was won…

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  • 18 November
    News

    Saturday Preview – Cheltenham November Meeting Trainer Stats

    As promised here are some of the more significant trainer stats from this high intensity jumps meeting. The stats are from 2012 to 2016 and consist of 95 winners from 1123 runners 277 placed. The top four trainers at the meeting numerically, have won just over 46% of all the races in the period: Philip Hobbs – 13 winners from…

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  • 16 November
    News

    Micro-Angles – A Profile Horse & Some Ante Post Information

    The Profile Horse Tangramm – Trained By Dean Ivory, the 5-year-old’s career record on the all-weather is 7 wins from 21 runs Strike Rate 33% SP Profit +1.13 10 placed Place Strike Rate 48% The son of Sakhees Secret wins his fair share of races then although it’s worth bearing in mind that he his losing run does go back…

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  • 15 November
    News

    Micro-Angles

    Hi all, The horse racing cranks up further this week with the first big meeting of the winter jumps meeting, the three day November Meeting at Cheltenham, which begins on Friday. This week’s article looks at some interesting trainer stats from the Cheltenham November meeting (published on Friday) and a couple of profitable trainer micro angles. As ever I also…

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  • 14 November
    News
    horse racing

    Weekly Eye-Catchers – Horse Racing

    More excellent horse racing over the jumps with top class cards at Wincanton and Aintree and the curtain finally came down on the turf flat season although I suspect for many in the racing hierarchy the season ended a couple of weeks earlier on Champions Day. The last big race of the season was won by the Ian Williams trained…

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