UK Horse Racing Tips

Archive for the ‘Racing Festivals’ Category

It’s time once again to focus on racing festivals, in this case the prestigeous Ebor Festival which takes place from the 17th to the 20th August. The four day race meeting isn’t quite the jewel in the crown of the flat racing season, but at the same time is steeped in history, dating back to 1843 in the form of the Ebor Handicap.

Much like other racing festivals, each day of the Ebor festival has feature races and a theme:

Wednesday – Juddmonte International Day
Thursday – Ladies’ Day
Friday – Nunthorpe Day
Saturday – Ebor Day

Some of the highlight races over these four days include the Great Voltigeur Stakes and Acomb Stakes on Wednesday, the Yorkshire Oaks on Thursday, the Nunthorpe Stakes, Gimcrack Stakes and Lonsdale Cup on Friday, and last but certainly not least the Ebor Handicap on Saturday.

The much anticipated Ebor Handicap is run over a distance of 1 mile and 6 furlongs and has been won by a couple of decent priced winners in recent years. In 2014 Mutual Regard, ridden by Louis Steward and trained by Johnny Murtagh came in at an impressive 20-1. Last year those odds were overshadowed by the Joseph Tuite trained Litigant, winning at 33-1 with bookmakers. Of course both of these pale into insigifance if we go back to 2006, when Mudawin ridden by John Egan made a lucky few punters extremely happy by delivering them with a 100-1 winner.

As with any race with history to it noteworthy records stand out. In the case of the Ebor Handicap the leading jockey over the history of the race is Lester Piggot with five wins between 1958 (Gladness) and 1983 (Jupiter Island). Leading trainer is Tom Dawson, also with five wins. The Lonsdale Cup, also held on the penultimate day of the Ebor Festival, is another race that gets punters excited. It’s a group two race run over a distance of 2 miles and 88 yards. The most successful jockey over the course is Pat Eddery, riding five horses to victory between 1983 and 1999, and the leading trainer John Dunlop with five wins between 1987 and 2012.

I, along with many punters, will no doubt be having a flutter this time around too. I’m liking the look of Amour de Nuit in the Ebor Heritage handicap but will make a final betting decision on the day. I’ll try not to go too crazy mind you as I’m off to Great Yarmouth next month for three days of racing, and will pop into the casino while I’m there too. Roulette is my game of choice since the odds are comparatively good compared to most other casino games. I had a little flutter on the premier roulette game on M88 earlier to get in the swing of things. I tend to stick with a single number and hope for the best, rather than go for an (almost) even money option of red and black, or odd and even. My approach also brings with it the chance of a bigger win if my luck is in! A bit of an all or nothing attitude!

The 2016 Grand National is almost here and I’m sure you’re chomping at the bit in anticipation as much as I am. It’s hard to argue though, that there’s often a lottery aspect to the National. With such a large field and a gruelling course to traverse, no matter your racing knowledge, there’s a ‘shot in the dark’ aspect to the race. With that in mind here’s five tips / recommendations for the 2016 Grand National. No matter what you go for best of luck!

1) Many Clouds – A somewhat obvious choice considering it was last year’s winner and has continued to impress since. It’s not carrying much more weight and at 7-1 it could be said to be the one to beat. How many times do we see a favourite falter at the Grand National though? More often than not!

2) Silviniaco Conti – Trained by Paul Nicholls and currently available at 12-1 Silviniaco Conti has won seven group one races (as well as two King George VI Chases) so is really up to the task if he clears the hurdles. It wouldn’t be the biggest surprise in the world to see it go close or even win.

3) Onenightinvienna – I couldn’t complete the list without a big priced shot in the dark (50-1). It’s not uncommon for a horse with big or even huge odds to win the Grand Nation so here is our outsider of choice. Onenightinvienna jumps well (which doesnt hurt in the national!) and if the ground is on the soft side he might pull out one of his better performances, so it’s worth an each way shot at least.

Should you specifically be looking to bet on outsiders in the grand national in the hope of winning big, you could do worse than seeing what the Outsider blog has to say on the matter!

In February, we wrote a very early article on the upcoming Cheltenham Festival and discussed some of the leading candidates for this year’s event. With one week until the meeting gets underway, we’re here to offer you a few more helpful tips and hints as to which horses look set to win at one of the most prestigious meetings of the National Hunt season – and here they are.

Douvan

In our previous piece, we fancied Faugheen to win on the festival’s opening day for the second year in a row, however he has been pulled after suffering an injury in the build-up to the event. Trainer Willie Mullins has plenty of incredible mounts running once again though, and fellow French-born thoroughbred Douvan may be the horse to watch in the Arkle Trophy on Tuesday.

Douvan romped home to win the Supreme last year and it would take a brave man to back against the Mullins-Ruby Walsh combination again in 2016. While Vaniteux is capable, Douvan, who is currently 2/5 with Coral to win the Arkle, is superior and should make all of the running to win comfortably. He certainly produced a dominating performance at Leopardstown in January to send a timely reminder to his nearest challengers.

Annie Power

For some, it might be a bit too soon to start trusting Annie Power again. Last year, she was clear in the Mares’ Hurdle and Ruby Walsh fell at the final fence – a huge stroke of luck for the bookmakers as they were set to be crippled for £50 million. This year, she’s back but will be entered in the Champion Hurdle instead after Faugheen’s injury. Annie Power is certainly capable but punters will be caught in two minds after last year’s mishap.

As the latest Cheltenham Festival odds reveal, Annie Power is priced at 6/4 with Coral to win the Champion Hurdle. Identity Thief may be her closest challenger and has the potential to cause an upset but Walsh should ride Annie Power to victory barring any unexpected jumping errors. On paper, she’s the best horse in the race and you should take her to eradicate any memories of last year’s defeat by bouncing back and winning this year.

Don Cossack

The Cheltenham Gold Cup is the highlight of the week’s racing and there are plenty of top contenders in this year’s race. It’s almost impossible to pick between the likes of Vautour, Djakadam and Don Cossack but the latter may be preferable after recent events. Prior to January’s Betbright Trial Chase at Cheltenham, Djakadam was the bookmakers’ favourite but a second fall at the circuit has put many people off.

Meanwhile, there are rumours that Vautour isn’t 100% and that leaves the door wide open for Don Cossack to romp home and snatch a Gold Cup victory for trainer Gordon Elliott. Without a shadow of a doubt, Don Cossack is a top-rated horse and he would be a deserving winner of this prestigious race but it’s almost too close to call. In fact, it could even be one of the closest races in Gold Cup history if Vautour is at his best.

On March 15th, horse racing fans from all over the world will be fixed to the four-day Cheltenham Festival. Over the course of the meeting, the best horses, trainers and jockeys will all feature heavily and punters will be looking to make a hefty profit in some of the most prestigious races on the planet.

Last year, Ruby Walsh enjoyed plenty of success on the opening day of the festival and Cheltenham punters will be hoping for similar results next month. In anticipation of the event, we’ve had a look at our top three horses throughout the meeting and have provided our reasons for these suggestions.

Faugheen

On the opening day, Faugheen will attempt to defend his crown in the Champion Hurdle. Although he will be coming up against both Nichols Canyon, the only horse to beat Faugheen during his 13-race career, and stablemate Arctic Fire, Ruby Walsh’s mount still looks a superb bet at 1/3 with Coral and it’s hard to imagine him getting beat here. Even trainer Willie Mullins was speechless at Faugheen’s defeat to Nichols Canyon in Novemeber and for us, there’s only one winner here and that’s the defending champion.

Un de Sceaux

The Willie Mullins-Ruby Walsh combination will look to strike in the Queen Mother Champion Chase with Un de Sceaux. Although his jumping has been suspect at times, he’s got phenomenal potential and should find this relatively straightforward if Ruby stays on board. Although there are a few decent contenders, Un de Sceaux is simply a class above the rest and may romp home. At 4/5, he’s not going to make you a millionaire but he’s well worth backing – that’s how good he is.

Bristol de Mai

Bristol de Mai is a superb thoroughbred and he looks a real candidate for future successes at the festival. Trained by Nigel Twiston-Davies, Bristol de Mai has never finished outside of the places and is likely to finish in the top three once again at Cheltenham. On current form, he stands a great chance and Coral punters are tipping him after his recent victory at Sandown. In fact, he was priced at 6/1 two weeks ago and he’s as short as 7/2. In order to ensure the best odds, it’s probably a good idea to place your wager on him to win the JLT Novices’ Chase now – that way, you can bet now and win later at Cheltenham!