UK Horse Racing Tips

Tapeta is a synthetic racing surface invented by former National Hunt Champion Trainer Michael Dickinson. Tapeta is not unlike Polytrack, insofar as it consists of a mixture of sand, rubber and fibres coated with hot wax, but is specifically designed to simulate the fibrous root structure of grass. The end result is a forgiving, cushioned surface, which is not only safer for horses and jockeys, but also handles inclement weather, including heavy rainfall, or even snowfall, extremely well.

Furthermore, the racing surface can be harrowed to create the desired going, ranging from firm to soft, and the going remains consistent across the width of the track, thereby eliminating any draw bias. The lack of kickback on Tapeta compared with, say, Fibresand has been welcomed by jockeys, while punters can place bets safe in the knowledge that the surface effectively creates a ‘level playing field’, with no unfair advantage one way or the other.

In Britain, the first racecourse to adopt Tapeta was Wolverhampton, which had previously raced on Fibresand and Polytrack, in 2014. It was closely followed by Newcastle, which replaced its turf course with Tapeta during the winter of 2015/16. In April, 2021, Southwell – which, like Wolverhampton and Newcastle, is owned by Arena Racing Company (ARC) – was granted planning permission to replace its existing Fibresand with Tapeta, with the first fixture on the new surface scheduled for November, 2021.

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