Advice

Who To Watch – Week Beginning 22nd October

Even though Champions Day has now been and gone, it’s not quite the end of the flat turf action as the final Group 1 of the season is at Doncaster on Saturday. The Vertem Futurity Trophy (formerly the Racing Post Trophy) has an exceptional role of honour and with the 1-2 from last year being Saxon Warrior and Roaring Lion,…

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Ascot British Champions Day – The Home of World Class Horses

In UK Flat racing, it has become traditional to end the season with a spectacular feast of racing known as the QIPCO British Champions Day on October 20. Although there is a two-day meeting at Doncaster the following week which features the final Group One race of the season, the Champions Day at Ascot is now regarded as the end…

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Weekly Diary – Horse Racing

Mullins Maintains Grip on Staying Handicaps Jumps trainer Willie Mullins looks like he could have a stranglehold on all the big staying flat handicaps over the next few years, if Saturday’s Cesarewitch is any guide. The Irish handler had 7 of the 33 runners, but managed to have the winner in Low Sun, and the runner-up in Uradel. The winner was given…

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Should You Godolphin at the Dubai Future Champions Festival?

The Dubai Future Champions Festival has become an annual event and takes place at Newmarket each year. It is a celebration of the best 2yo horses in Britain and is a fitting appetiser for the following week’s Champions Festival at Ascot. Although these horses are unquestionably the future, punters are also interested in how these magnificent talents perform on the…

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Bad Run or Bad Runner? Should You Back Horses That Failed to Finish Last Time Out in National Hunt Races?

For some punters, the form is everything which means dismissing a horse if it had a poor race last time out. Over the last year, I have analysed a lot of major races and found that most winners performed well in their previous race. However, this may only hold true for races at the highest level.  In lower grade races,…

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Weekly Diary

Happy October! There’s a chill in the air, and we have entered a new month. We may have the Arc Weekend and Champions Day to look forward to this month, but you know winter isn’t far away, as later this month Cheltenham will be hosting its first jumps meeting of the season. Let’s take a look back at Saturday’s Newmarket…

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Early Favourites in the 2019 Cheltenham Gold Cup Betting

On Friday the 15th March, we will once again be witness to one of the greatest events on the jump racing calendar, the 2019 Cheltenham Gold Cup. The 2018 Cheltenham Gold Cup produced a thrilling matchup between the heavily backed Might Bite and eventual winner Native River. The 15-runner race saw Native River and Might Bite battle it out in…

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Claiming Jockeys – Does the Weight Off a Make a Difference?

There are an estimated 750 jockeys in the United Kingdom. You may be surprised to learn that approximately 300 of them are amateurs while the other 450 are professionals. At the start of their career, all professionals are licensed as either Conditional (National Hunt) or Apprentice (Flat and All-Weather racing) jockeys.  Initially, inexperienced jockeys receive a helping hand in the…

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The St. Leger Stakes – Britain’s Oldest Classic

Autumn is truly a wonderful time of year for racing fans in the North of England. There is little time to rest after the excitement of the Ebor Festival at York, because the last of the Classics, the St. Leger Stakes, is upon us! It is part of a four-day festival which takes place at Doncaster Racecourse from 12-15 September.…

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32 Red Sprint Cup at Haydock

The 3-day Sprint Cup Festival takes place from September 6 – 8 this year at Haydock Park, long regarded as one of Britain’s most attractive racecourses. The feature race, the Group 1 Sprint Cup, is the last top-level sprint race of the year and the 6-furlong dash normally brings a world-class field with Championship honours at stake. It is one…

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Should You Go Dutch? A Guide to ‘Dutching’ in Horse Racing

Legend has it that the term ‘dutching’ comes from the mobster Arthur Simon Flegenheimer, better known as Dutch Schultz. He was Al Capone’s accountant and was involved in various rackets including a racetrack. Schultz is credited with coming up with the idea of dutching in the 1920s.  It is a system of betting used mainly in horse racing and football.…

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Is York the Greatest Track in the UK?

Although it is only the third biggest racecourse in the UK in terms of prize money, and second (behind Ascot) regarding prize money per meeting, York racecourse is widely regarded as the #1 course in Britain. During the year, York hosts three Group 1 races: The Nunthorpe Stakes, the Juddmonte International Stakes, and the Yorkshire Oaks. All three take place…

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Monday’s Weekly Roundup – Horse Racing

As promised this article primarily looks at the upcoming Yorkshire Ebor Festival which starts on Wednesday. However, I will begin with a look back at last week’s racing action. Towcester must focus on the horses, not the dogs The most interesting story of the week took place off the track rather than on it with the announcement that Towcester racecourse…

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Sprinters on the Rail – Should You Back Horses Drawn Low in Short Races?

Stalls were first introduced in the United Kingdom in 1965 for Flat races. For decades, stall #1 was always furthest to the left from a jockey’s perspective. For left-handed courses, it meant #1 was by the rail while on right-handed courses, #1 was drawn widest. The BHA changed everything, however, and since March 30, 2011, the #1 stall is the…

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Horses New to Trainers – Who Performs Best?

Every so often, you will hear about a horse winning its first race with a new trainer. Does this mean the trainer has produced racing alchemy to boost the performance of a hitherto underwhelming horse? Perhaps the horse’s former trainer didn’t know how to get the best out of the animal. Alternatively, maybe the new trainer simply picked the right…

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Monday’s Weekly Roundup – Horse Racing

Well, this is the first of my new Monday articles.  It’s an opportunity to take a look back at some of last week’s horse racing highlights and also look forward to the week ahead in the racing world. As ever there will be plenty of stats highlighted for you. Brilliant Battaash Blitz’s Rivals I am writing this at the end…

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Draw Bias at Goodwood

Of all the major festivals on the UK racing calendar, it is suggested that Glorious Goodwood has arguably the most extensive level of draw bias. It is something that has been spoken about for years. Back in 2009, Simon Rowlands of Betfair wrote about the bias for horses near the rails in the Mile Handicap; primarily due to a large…

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Fitting the Bill: Does Your Selection Make Sense? A Simple Way to Analyse Your Horse Racing Picks

Even a 10-runner race can take a significant amount of time to analyse. Back in November 2011, Michael wrote a brief article entitled Finding Selections – The Beginner’s Guide and pointed out that professional bettors look at a vast array of factors. He mentioned eight of them and noted that in a race with ten horses, you would have 720…

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Is Kelly’s Criterion Effective in Horse Racing Betting?

Experienced punters would suggest that a proper staking plan is as important as finding winners when trying to attain long-term profit. Let’s face it, even the best ‘system’ will have extensive losing runs. If your current method of staking is unable to get you through these rough patches, it is a waste of time because you won’t benefit from the…

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Trainers, Jockeys & Stallion Offspring at the Newmarket July Festival – Who Is Profitable & Who Should Be Avoided?

Often proclaimed ‘the home of British racing’, Newmarket is about to host its famous annual event in what is now called the Moet and Chandon July Festival. The three-day event takes place from the 12-14 July and features several Group races including the Falmouth Stakes and the Darley July Cup. It is also the scene of the much-loved Bunbury Cup…

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